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* V'  A* 


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EAST  OF  SUEZ 


PRESENT-DAY  EGYPT 


By  Frederic  Courtland  Penfield,  Former  American  Diplomatic 
Agent  and  Consul-General  to  Egypt. 


Secretariat 

du 

Khedive 

Ras-el-Teen  Palace, 
Alexandria,  4th  November,  1899 

Frederic  C.  Penfield,  Esquire, 

Manhattan  Club,  New  York. 

My  dear  Sir : 

I am  commanded  by  H.  H.  The  Khedive  to 
acknowledge  the  receipt  of  the  copy  of  your 
book  “ Present-Day  Egypt,”  which  you  have 
so  kindly  forwarded  for  his  acceptance. 

I am  to  say  that  His  Highness  has  read  it 
with  much  pleasure  and  interest,  as  it  is  the 
only  book  published  on  Egypt  of  to-day  by 
an  author  thoroughly  acquainted  with  the 
subject  through  long  residence  and  official 
position  in  the  country. 

I have  the  honor  to  be,  Sir, 
Your  obedient  servant, 
(Signed)  Alfred  B.  Brewster, 

Private  Secretary  to  H.  H.  the  Khedive. 


Revised  and  Enlarged  Edition.  Fully  illustrated. 
Uniform  with  “ East  of  Suez.”  8vo.  396  pages.  $2.50 


The  Century  Co., 
Union  Square  New  York 


GULF  OF  MANAR  PEARLING  BOAT,  AND  DIVERS  RESTING  IN  THE  WATER 


EAST  OF  SUEZ 

CEYLON,  INDIA,  CHINA  AND  JAPAN 


Frederic  Courtland  Penfield 

Author  of  “Present-Day  Egypt,”  etc. 


op 

Illustrated  from  Drawings  and  Photographs 

¥ 


“ East  is  East,  and  West  is  West,  and 

never  the  twain  shall  meet, 

Till  Earth  and  Sky  stand  presently  at 

God’s  great  Judgment  Seat.” 

Kipling. 


NEW  YORK 

THE  CENTURY  CO. 

1912 


Copyright,  1906,  1907,  by 

The  Century  Co. 


Published,  February,  1907 


TO  THE  MEMORY  OF 

KATHARINE 


Introductory 

IF  books  of  travel  were  not  written  the  stay-at- 
home  millions  would  know  little  of  the  strange 
or  interesting  sights  of  this  beautiful  world  of 
ours ; and  it  surely  is  better  to  have  a vicarious 
knowledge  of  what  is  beyond  the  vision  than  dwell 
in  ignorance  of  the  ways  and  places  of  men  and 
women  included  in  the  universal  human  family. 

The  Great  East  is  a fascinating  theme  to  most 
readers,  and  every  traveler,  from  Marco  Polo  to 
the  tourist  of  the  present  time,  taking  the  trouble 
to  record  what  he  saw,  has  placed  every  fireside 
reader  under  distinct  obligation. 

So  thorough  was  my  mental  acquaintance  with 
India  through  years  of  sympathetic  study  of  Kip- 
ling that  a leisurely  survey  of  Hind  simply  con- 
firmed my  impressions.  Other  generous  writers 
had  as  faithfully  taught  what  China  in  reality  was, 
and  Mortimer  Menpes,  Basil  Hall  Chamberlain, 
and  Miss  Scidmore  had  as  conscientiously  depicted 
to  my  understanding  the  ante-war  Japan.  Grate- 
ful am  I,  as  well,  to  the  legion  of  tireless  writers 
attracted  to  the  East  by  recent  strife  and  con- 
quest, who  have  made  Fuji  more  familiar  to  aver- 
age readers  than  any  mountain  peak  in  the  United 
States ; who  have  made  the  biographies  of  favorite 
geishas  known  even  in  our  hamlets  and  mining 

vii 


Introductory 

camps,  and  whose  agreeable  iteration  of  scenes  on 
Manila’s  lunetta  compel  our  Malaysian  capital  to 
be  known  as  well  as  Coney  Island  and  Atlantic 
City— they  have  so  graphically  portrayed  and  de- 
scribed interesting  features  that  of  them  nothing 
remains  to  be  told.  But  to  know  Eastern  lands 
and  peoples  without  an  intermediary  is  keenly  de- 
lightful and  compensating. 

The  travel  impulse  and  longing  for  first-hand 
knowledge,  native  with  most  mortals,  is  yearly 
finding  readier  expression.  Our  grandparents 
earned  a renown  more  than  local  by  crossing  the 
Atlantic  to  view  England  and  the  Continent,  while 
our  fathers  and  mothers  exploring  distant  Russia 
and  the  Nile  were  accorded  marked  consideration. 
The  wandering  habit  is  as  progressive  as  catching, 
and  what  sufficed  our  ancestors  satisfies  only  in 
minor  degree  the  longing  of  the  present  genera- 
tion for  roving.  Hence  the  grand  tour,  the  circuit 
of  the  earth,  is  becoming  an  ordinary  achievement. 
And  while  hundreds  of  Americans  are  compassing 
the  earth  this  year,  thousands  will  place  the  globe 
under  tribute  in  seasons  not  remote. 

For  many  years  to  come  India  and  Ceylon  will 
practically  be  what  they  are  to-day,  and  sluggish 
China  will  require  much  rousing  before  her  na- 
tional characteristics  differ  from  what  they  are 
now;  but  of  Japan  it  is  different,  for,  having  made 
up  their  minds  to  remodel  the  empire,  the  sons  of 
Nippon  are  not  doing  things  by  halves,  and  the  old 
is  being  supplanted  by  the  new  with  amazing  rap- 
idity. 


vm 


Introductory 

Possibly  it  is  a misfortune  to  find  oneself  in- 
capable of  preparing  a volume  of  travel  without 
inflicting  a sermon  upon  kindly  disposed  persons, 
but  a book  of  journeyings  loaded  with  gentle 
preachment  must  at  least  be  a novelty.  Travel 
books  imparting  no  patriotic  lesson  may  well  be 
left  to  authors  and  readers  of  older  and  self-suffi- 
cient nations.  A work  appealing  on  common  lines 
to  a New  World  audience  would  be  worse  than 
banal,  and  a conscientious  American  writer  is  com- 
pelled to  describe  not  alone  what  he  saw,  but  in 
clarion  notes  tell  of  some  things  he  failed  of  see- 
ing, for  our  country,  emerging  but  now  from  the 
formative  period,  and  destined  to  permanently 
lead  the  universe  in  material  affairs,  is  entitled  to 
be  better  known  in  the  East  by  its  manufactures. 

Every  piece  of  money  expended  in  travel  is  but 
the  concrete  form  of  somebody’s  toil,  or  the  equiv- 
alent of  a marketed  product:  and  consequently  it 
is  almost  unnecessary  to  remind  that  industry  and 
thrift  must  precede  expenditure,  or  to  assert  that 
toil  and  travel  bear  inseparable  relationship.  What 
the  American,  zigzagging  up  and  down  and  across 
that  boundless  region  spoken  of  as  East  of  Suez, 
fails  to  see  is  the  product  of  Uncle  Sam’s  mills, 
workshops,  mines  and  farms.  From  the  moment 
he  passes  the  Suez  Canal  to  his  arrival  at  Hong 
Kong  or  Yokohama,  the  Stars  and  Stripes  are  dis- 
covered in  no  harbor  nor  upon  any  sea ; and  maybe 
he  sees  the  emblem  of  the  great  republic  not  once 
in  the  transit  of  the  Pacific.  And  the  products  of 
our  marvelous  country  are  met  but  seldom,  if  at 


IX 


Introductory 


all,  where  the  American  wanders  in  the  East.  He 
is  rewarded  by  finding  that  the  Light  of  Asia  is 
American  petroleum,  but  that  is  about  the  only 
Western  commodity  he  is  sure  of  encountering  in 
months  of  travel. 

This  state  of  things  is  grievously  wrong,  for  it 
should  be  as  easy  for  us  to  secure  trade  in  the 
Orient  as  for  any  European  nation,  and  assuredly 
easier  than  for  Germany.  We  have  had  such 
years  of  material  prosperity  and  progress  as  were 
never  known  in  the  history  of  any  people,  it  is 
true;  but  every  cycle  of  prosperity  has  been  suc- 
ceeded by  lean  years,  and  ever  will  be.  When  the 
inevitable  over-production  and  lessened  home  con- 
sumption come,  Eastern  markets,  though  supplied 
at  moderate  profit,  will  be  invaluable.  We  are 
building  the  Panama  Canal,  whose  corollary  must 
be  a mercantile  fleet  of  our  own  upon  the  seas,  dis- 
tributing the  products  of  our  soil  and  manufacto- 
ries throughout  the  world,  and  Secretary  of  State 
Root  has  made  it  easy  for  a better  understanding 
and  augmented  trade  with  the  republics  to  the 
south  of  us.  But  America’s  real  opportunity  is  in 
Asia,  where  dwell  more  than  half  the  people  of  the 
earth,  for  the  possibilities  of  commerce  with  the 
rich  East  exceed  those  of  South  America  tenfold. 
Uncle  Sam  merits  a goodly  share  of  the  trade  of 
both  these  divisions  of  the  globe. 

The  people  of  the  United  States  must  cut  loose 
from  the  idea  that  has  lost  its  logic  in  recent  years, 
that  the  Pacific  Ocean  separates  America  from  the 
lands  and  islands  of  Asia,  and  look  upon  it  as  a 


x 


Introductory 

body  of  water  connecting  us  with  the  bountiful 
East.  The  old  theory  was  good  enough  for  our 
home-building  fathers,  but  is  blighting  to  a gen- 
eration aspiring  to  Americanize  the  globe.  The 
genius  of  our  nation  should  cause  our  ploughs  and 
harrows  to  prepare  the  valley  and  delta  of  the  Nile 
for  tillage ; be  responsible  for  the  whir  of  more  of 
our  agricultural  machinery  in  the  fields  of  India ; 
locate  our  lathes  and  planers  and  drilling  machines 
in  Eastern  shops,  in  substitution  for  those  made  in 
England  or  Germany ; be  responsible  for  American 
locomotives  drawing  American  cars  in  Manchuria 
and  Korea  over  rails  rolled  in  Pittsburgh,  and  in- 
duce half  the  inhabitants  of  southern  Asia  to  dress 
in  fabrics  woven  in  the  United  States,  millions  of 
the  people  of  Cathay  to  tread  the  earth  in  shoes 
produced  in  New  England,  and  all  swayed  to  an 
appreciation  of  our  flour  as  a substitute  for  rice- 
yes,  make  it  easy  to  obtain  pure  canned  foods 
everywhere  in  China  and  Japan,  even  to  hear  the 
merry  click  of  the  typewriter  in  Delhi,  Bangkok 
and  Pekin. 

Do  we  not  already  lead  in  foreign  trade?  We 
do,  I gratefully  admit ; but  it  is  because  we  sell  to 
less  favored  peoples  our  grains  and  fiber  in  a raw 
state.  Confessedly,  these  are  self-sellers,  for  not 
a bushel  of  wheat  or  ounce  of  cotton  is  sold  be- 
cause of  any  enterprise  on  our  part— the  buyer 
must  have  them,  and  the  initiative  of  the  trans- 
action is  his. 

What  economists  regard  as  “trade”  in  its  most 
advantageous  form,  is  the  selling  to  foreigners  of 


xi 


Introductory 

something  combining  the  natural  products  and  the 
handiwork  of  a nation — this  is  the  trade  that 
America  should  look  for  in  the  East,  and  seek  it 
now.  It  is  not  wild  prophecy  that  within  five  years 
a considerable  number  of  the  sovereign  people  of 
the  country  controlling  its  growth  will  feel  that  it 
is  carrying  international  comity  to  the  point  of 
philanthropy  to  export  cotton  to  England  and 
Japan  to  be  there  fabricated  for  the  wear  of  every 
race  of  Asia,  and  sold  in  successful  competition 
with  American  textiles.  In  the  pending  battle  for 
the  world’s  markets  Uncle  Sam  should  win  trade 
by  every  proper  means,  and  not  by  methods  most 
easily  invoked;  and  let  it  ever  be  remembered 
that  shortsightedness  is  plainly  distinct  from 
altruism. 

Frederic  C.  Penfield. 

Authors  Club,  New  York  City, 

January  26,  1907. 


Xll 


CONTENTS 


CHAPTER  PAGE 

I  THE  WORLD’S  TURNSTILE  AT  SUEZ  ....  3 

II  COLOMBO,  CEYLON’S  COSMOPOLITAN  SEA- 
PORT   30 

III  THE  LURE  OF  THE  PEARL SO 

IV  UPWARD  TO  THE  SHRINE  OF  BUDDHA  ...  92 

V  IN  CEYLON’S  HILL  COUNTRY 108 

VI  BOMBAY  AND  ITS  PARSEE  “JEES”  AND 

“BHOYS”  126 

VII  THE  VICARIOUS  MAHARAJAH  OF  JEYPORE  . 149 

VIII  THE  WORLD ’S  MOST  EXQUISITE  BUILDING  . . 168 

IX  BENARES,  SACRED  CITY  OF  THE  HINDUS  . . 185 

X  INDIA ’S  MODERN  CAPITAL 205 

XI  ISLAND  LINKS  IN  BRITAIN’S  CHAIN  OF  EM- 
PIRE   226 

XII  CANTON,  UNIQUE  CITY  OF  CHINA 244 

XIII  MACAO,  THE  MONTE  CARLO  OF  THE  FAR  EAST  267 

XIV  THE  KAISER’S  PLAY  FOR  CHINESE  TRADE  . 290 

XV  JAPAN’S  COMMERCIAL  FUTURE 315 

INDEX S45 


LIST  OF  ILLUSTRATIONS 


PAGE 

GULF  OF  MANAR  PEARLING  BOAT,  AND  DIVERS  RESTING 


IN  THE  WATER Frontispiece 

From  drawing  by  Corwin  K.  Linson. 

PORT  SAID  ENTRANCE  TO  SUEZ  CANAL,  SHOWING  DE  LES- 

SEPS’S  STATUE 8 

From  photograph  by  Georgilada  Kip. 

ITALIAN  WARSHIP  STEAMING  THROUGH  CANAL  ....  13 

CARGO  STEAMER  IN  THE  CANAL  AT  KILOMETER  133  ...  25 

From  photograph  by  Georgilada  Kip. 

THE  JETTY  AT  COLOMBO  32 

HINDU  SILVERSMITHS,  COLOMBO  38 

From  photograph  by  Skeen  & Co. 

A HIGH  PRIEST  OF  BUDDHA 42 

From  photograph  by  Colombo  Apothecaries  Co.,  Ltd. 


REPRESENTATION  OF  BUDDHA'S  TOOTH,  COLOMBO  MUSEUM  46 
MAP  OF  THE  GULF  OF  MANAR,  “THE  SEA  ABOUNDING  IN 


PEARLS”  53 

COOLIES  CARRYING  PEARL  OYSTERS  FROM  THE  BOATS  TO 

THE  GOVERNMENT  “KOTTU” 60 

From  drawing  by  Corwin  K.  Linson. 

THE  LATE  RANA  OF  DHOLPUR  IN  HIS  PEARL  REGALIA  . . 67 

From  photograph  by  Johnston  & Hoffmann. 

INDIAN  PEARL  MERCHANTS  READY  FOR  BUSINESS,  MA- 

RICHCHIKKADDI  74 

From  drawing  by  Corwin  K.  Linson. 

THE  LATE  MAHARAJAH  OF  PATIALA  IN  HIS  PEARL  REGALIA  83 

From  photograph  by  Johnston  & Hoffmann. 


A LADY  OF  KANDY 94 

From  photograph  by  Skeen  & Co. 

TEMPLE  OF  THE  TOOTH,  KANDY 99 


From  photograph  by  Colombo  Apothecaries  Co.,  Ltd. 
XV 


List  of  Illustrations 

PAGE 

CREMATION  OF  A BUDDHIST  PRIEST 105 

From  photograph  by  Plat6  & Co. 

TREES  IN  PERADENIYA  GARDEN,  KANDY Ill 

From  photographs  by  Frederic  C.  Penfield. 

TAMIL  COOLIE  SETTING  OUT  TEA  PLANTS 115 

TAMIL  GIRL  PLUCKING  TEA 119 

A KANDYAN  CHIEFTAIN 124 

PARSEE  TOWER  OF  SILENCE,  BOMBAY  129 

A BOMBAY  RAILWAY  STATION  186 

A BOMBAY  POLICEMAN  141 

HIS  HIGHNESS  THE  MAHARAJAH  OF  JEYPORE 148 

A MATCHED  PAIR  OF  BULLOCKS,  JEYPORE 153 

STREET  SCENE,  JEYPORE,  SHOWING  PALACE  OF  THE  WINDS  157 

COURT  DANCERS  AND  MUSICIANS,  JEYPORE 162 

THE  TAJ  MAHAL,  AGRA  169 

ALABASTER  SCREEN  ENCLOSING  ARJAMAND'S  TOMB,  TAJ 

MAHAL 175 

INLAID  WORK  IN  MAUSOLEUM  OF  IT1MAD-UD-DAULAH, 

AGRA 182 

SCENE  ON  THE  GANGES,  BENARES 188 

BENARES  BURNING  GHAT,  WITH  CORPSES  BEING  PURIFIED 

IN  THE  GANGES  191 

BENARES  HOLY  MEN 198 

A BRAHMIN  PRIEST  203 

A CALCUTTA  NAUTCH  DANCER  207 

GENERAL  POST  OFFICE,  CALCUTTA 212 

SHIPPING  ON  THE  HOOGHLY,  CALCUTTA  215 

xvi 


List  of  Illustrations 

PAGE 

CALCUTTA  COOLIES  222 

HONG  KONG  HARBOR 229 

HONG  KONG’S  MOUNTAINSIDE  233 

A FORMER  “HIS  EXCELLENCY  THE  GOVERNOR”  OF  HONG 

KONG  240 

TEMPLE  OF  THE  FIVE  HUNDRED  GENII,  CANTON  ....  247 
From  photograph  by  A-Chan. 

CITY  OF  BOATS,  CANTON,  WHERE  GENERATIONS  ARE  BORN 

AND  DIE  254 

EXAMINATION  BOOTHS,  CANTON  . 261 

From  photograph  by  A-Chan. 

PRINCIPAL  SECTION  OF  MACAO 270 

FRONTIER  GATE  BETWEEN  CHINA  PROPER  AND  THE  POR- 
TUGUESE COLONY  275 

MONUMENT  AND  BUST  OF  CAMOENS,  MACAO 279 

IN  A FAN-TAN  GAMBLING  HOUSE,  MACAO  288 

TYPICAL  BUSINESS  STREET  IN  A CHINESE  CITY 293 

From  photograph  by  A-Chan. 

EXHIBITION  OF  BODIES  OF  CHINESE  MALEFACTORS  WHO 

HAVE  BEEN  STRANGLED 300 

SIMPLE  PUNISHMENT  OF  A CHINESE  MENDICANT  ....  305 

CHINESE  BUDDHIST  PRIESTS 311 

BRONZE  DAIBUTSU  AT  KAMAKURA,  JAPAN 319 

From  photograph  by  Frederic  C.  Penfield. 

A GARDEN  VIEW  OF  THE  AMERICAN  EMBASSY,  TOKYO  . . 328 

From  photograph  by  Frederic  C.  Penfield. 

JAPANESE  JUNK,  OR  CARGO  BOAT 337 

xvii 


EAST  OF  SUEZ 


EAST  OF  SUEZ 


CHAPTER  I 


THE  WORLD’S  TURNSTILE  AT  SUEZ 

HEN  historical  novels  and  ‘ ‘ purpose  ’ ’ books 


dealing  with  great  industries  and  commod- 
ities cease  to  sell,  the  vagrant  atoms  and  shadings 
of  history  ending  with  the  opening  of  the  two 
world-important  canals  might  be  employed  by 
writers  seeking  incidents  as  entrancing  as  ro- 
mances and  which  are  capable  of  being  woven 
into  narrative  sufficiently  interesting  to  compel  a 
host  of  readers.  The  person  fortunate  enough  to 
blaze  the  trail  in  this  literary  departure  will  have 
a superabundance  of  material  at  command,  if  he 
know  where  and  how  to  seek  it. 

The  paramount  fact-story  of  all  utilitarian 
works  of  importance  is  unquestionably  that  sur- 
rounding the  great  portal  connecting  Europe  with 
Asia.  As  romances  are  plants  of  slow  growth  in 
lands  of  the  Eastern  hemisphere,  compared  with 
the  New  World,  the  fascinating  tale  of  Suez  re- 


3 


East  of  Suez 


quired  two  or  three  thousand  years  for  its  devel- 
opment, while  that  of  Panama  had  its  beginning 
less  than  four  hundred  years  ago.  In  both  cases 
the  possession  of  a canal  site  demanded  by  com- 
merce brought  loss  of  territory  and  prestige  to 
the  government  actually  owning  it.  The  Egyp- 
tians were  shorn  of  the  privilege  of  governing 
Egypt  through  the  reckless  pledging  of  credit  to 
raise  funds  for  the  completion  of  the  waterway 
connecting  Port  Said  and  Suez,  and  the  South 
American  republic  of  Colombia  saw  a goodly 
slice  of  territory  pass  forever  from  her  rule,  with 
the  Panama  site,  when  the  republic  on  the  isthmus 
came  suddenly  into  being. 

Vexatious  and  humiliating  as  the  incidents 
must  have  been  to  the  Egyptians  and  the  Colom- 
bians, the  world  at  large,  broadly  considering  the 
situations,  pretends  to  see  no  misfortune  in  the 
conversion  of  trifling  areas  to  the  control  of  abler 
administrators,  comparing  each  action  to  the  con- 
demning of  a piece  of  private  property  to  the  use 
of  the  universe.  When  the  canal  connecting  the 
Atlantic  with  the  Pacific  shall  be  completed,  no 
more  waterways  uniting  oceans  will  be  necessary 
or  possible.  But,  did  a weak  people  possess  a site 
that  might  be  utilized  by  the  ebbing  and  flowing 
of  the  globe’s  shipping,  when  a canal  had  been 
made,  they  would  obviously  hesitate  a long  time 
before  voluntarily  parading  its  advantages. 

The  uniting  of  the  Mediterranean  and  Red  seas 
was  considered  long  before  the  birth  of  Christ,  and 
many  wise  men  and  potentates  toyed  with  the 

4 


The  World’s  Turnstile  at  Suez 


project  in  the  hoary  ages.  The  Persian  king, 
Necho,  was  dissuaded  sixteen  hundred  years  be- 
fore the  dawn  of  Christianity  from  embarking  in 
the  enterprise,  through  the  warning  of  his  favor- 
ite oracle,  who  insisted  that  the  completion  of  the 
work  would  bring  a foreign  invasion,  resulting  in 
the  loss  of  canal  and  country  as  well.  The  great 
Rameses  was  not  the  only  ruler  of  the  country  of 
the  Nile  who  coquetted  with  the  project.  In  1800 
the  engineers  of  Napoleon  studied  the  scheme,  but 
their  error  in  estimating  the  Red  Sea  to  be  thirty 
feet  below  the  Mediterranean  kept  the  Corsican 
from  undertaking  the  cutting  of  a canal.  Mehemet 
Ali,  whose  energies  for  improving  the  welfare  of 
his  Egyptian  people  were  almost  boundless,  never 
yielded  to  the  blandishment  of  engineers  scheming 
to  pierce  the  isthmus;  he  may  have  known  of  the 
prognostication  of  Necho ’s  oracle. 

Greater  than  any  royal  actor  in  the  Suez  enter- 
prise, however,  was  Ferdinand  de  Lesseps,  the 
Frenchman  whom  history  persists  in  calling  an 
engineer.  By  training  and  occupation  he  was  a 
diplomatist,  probably  knowing  no  more  of  engi- 
neering than  of  astronomy  or  therapeutics.  Pos- 
sessing limitless  ambition,  he  longed  to  be  con- 
spicuously in  the  public  gaze,  to  be  great.  He  ex- 
celled as  a negotiator,  and  knew  this ; and  it  came 
easy  to  him  to  organize  and  direct.  In  his  day  the 
designation  “Captain  of  Industry”  had  not  been 
devised.  In  the  project  of  canalizing  the  Suez 
isthmus— perennial  theme  of  Cairo  bazaar  and 
coffee-house— he  recognized  his  opportunity,  and 

5 


East  of  Suez 


severed  his  connection  with  the  French  Consulate- 
General  in  Egypt  to  promote  the  alluring  scheme, 
under  a concession  readily  procured  from  Viceroy 
Said.  This  was  in  1856. 

Egypt  had  no  debt  whatever  when  Said  Pasha 
signed  the  document.  But  when  the  work  was  com- 
pleted, in  1869,  the  government  of  the  ancient  land 
of  the  Pharaohs  was  fairly  tottering  under  its  ava- 
lanche of  obligations  to  European  creditors,  for 
every  wile  of  the  plausible  De  Lesseps  had  been 
employed  to  get  money  from  simple  Said,  and 
later  from  Ismail  Pasha,  who  succeeded  him  in 
the  khedivate.  For  fully  a decade  the  raising  of 
money  for  the  project  was  the  momentous  work  of 
the  rulers  of  Egypt;  but  more  than  half  the  cash 
borrowed  at  usurious  rates  stuck  to  the  hands  of 
the  money  brokers  in  Europe,  let  it  be  known, 
while  the  obligation  of  Said  or  Ismail  was  in  every 
instance  for  the  full  amount. 

Incidentally,  a condition  of  the  concession  was 
that  Egypt  need  subscribe  nothing,  and  as  a consid- 
eration for  the  concession  it  was  solemnly  stipula- 
ted that  for  ninety-nine  years— the  period  for 
which  the  concession  was  given— fifteen  per  cent, 
of  the  gross  takings  of  the  enterprise  would  be 
paid  to  the  Egyptian  treasury. 

Learning  the  borrowing  habit  from  his  relations 
with  plausible  De  Lesseps,  the  magnificent  Ismail 
borrowed  in  such  a wholesale  manner,  for  the 
Egyptian  people  and  himself,  that  in  time  both 
were  hopelessly  in  default  to  stony-hearted  Euro- 
pean creditors.  Egyptian  bonds  were  then  quoted 

6 


PORT  SAID  ENTRANCE  TO  SUEZ  CANAL,  SHOWING  DE  LESSEPS'S  STATUE 


The  World’s  Turnstile  at  Suez 


in  London  at  about  half  their  face  value,  and  Brit- 
ons held  a major  part  of  them. 

England  had  originally  fought  the  canal  project, 
opposing  it  in  every  way  open  to  her  power  and  in- 
fluence at  Continental  capitals.  The  belief  in  time 
dawning  upon  the  judgment  of  Britain  that  the 
canal  would  be  finished  and  would  succeed,  her 
statesmen  turned  their  energies  to  checkmating  and 
minimizing  the  influence  of  De  Lesseps  and  his 
dupe  Ismail.  The  screws  were  consequently  put 
on  the  Sultan  of  Turkey— whose  vassal  Ismail  was 
— resulting  in  that  Merry  Monarch  of  the  Nile  be- 
ing deposed  and  sent  into  exile,  and  the  national 
cash-box  at  Cairo  was  at  the  same  time  turned 
over  to  a commission  of  European  administrators 
—and  is  yet  in  their  keeping. 

But  the  miserable  people  of  Egypt,  the  burdened 
fellaheen,  resented  the  interference  of  Christian 
money-lenders,  demanding  more  than  their  pound 
of  flesh.  The  Arabi  rebellion  resulted,  when  Brit- 
ish regiments  and  warships  were  sent  to  quell 
the  uprising  and  restore  the  authority  of  the  Khe- 
dive. That  was  nearly  a quarter  of  a century  ago ; 
but  since  the  revolution  the  soldiers  and  civil  ser- 
vants of  England  have  remained  in  Egypt,  and  to 
all  intents  and  purposes  the  country  has  become 
a colony  of  England.  The  defaulted  debts  of  the 
canal-building  period  were  responsible  for  these 
happenings,  be  it  said. 

Verily,  the  fulfilment  of  Necho’s  oracle  came 
with  terrible  force,  and  generations  of  Nile  hus- 
bandmen must  toil  early  and  late  to  pay  the  in- 

9 


East  of  Suez 


terest  on  the  public  debt  incurred  through  Ismail’s 
prodigality.  This  degraded  man  in  his  exile  persist- 
ently maintained  that  he  believed  he  was  doing 
right  when  borrowing  for  the  canal,  for  it  was  to 
elevate  Egypt  to  a position  of  honor  and  promi- 
nence in  the  list  of  nations.  And  it  is  the  irony  of 
fate,  surely,  that  Ismail’s  personal  holding  in  the 
canal  company  was  sacrificed  to  the  British  gov- 
ernment for  half  its  actual  value,  on  the  eve  of  his 
dethronement,  and  that  every  tittle  of  interest  in 
the  enterprise  held  by  the  Egyptian  government- 
including  the  right  to  fifteen  per  cent,  of  the  re- 
ceipts—was  lost  or  abrogated.  Owning  not  a 
share  of  stock  in  the  undertaking,  and  having  no 
merchant  shipping  to  be  benefited,  Egypt  derives 
no  more  advantage  from  the  great  Suez  Canal 
than  an  imaginary  kingdom  existing  in  an  An- 
thony Hope  novel. 

The  canal  has  prospered  beyond  the  dreams  of 
its  author ; but  this  means  no  more  to  the  country 
through  which  it  runs  than  the  success  of  the 
canals  of  Mars.  De  Lesseps  died  in  a madhouse 
and  practically  a pauper,  while  Ismail  spent  his 
last  years  a prisoner  in  a gilded  palace  on  the  Bos- 
porus, and  was  permitted  to  return  to  his  beloved 
country  only  after  death.  These  are  but  some  of 
the  tragic  side-lights  of  the  great  story  of  the  Suez 
Canal. 

A few  years  since  there  was  a movement  in 
France  to  perpetuate  De  Lesseps ’s  name  by  offi- 
cially calling  the  waterway  the  Canal  de  Lesseps. 
But  England  withheld  its  approval,  while  other  in- 

10 


The  World’s  Turnstile  at  Suez 


terests  having  a right  to  be  heard  believed  that 
the  stigma  of  culpability  over  the  Panama  swin- 
dles was  fastened  upon  De  Lesseps  too  positively 
to  merit  the  tribute  desired  by  his  relatives  and 
friends.  As  a modified  measure,  however,  the 
canal  administration  was  willing  to  appropriate  a 
modest  sum  to  provide  a statue  of  the  once  hon- 
ored man  to  be  placed  at  the  Mediterranean  en- 
trance of  the  canal. 

There  stands  to-day  on  the  jetty  at  Port  Said, 
consequently,  a bronze  effigy  of  the  man  for  a few 
years  known  as  “Le  grand  Frajnjais,”  visage  di- 
rected toward  Constantinople  (where  once  he  had 
been  potent  in  intrigue),  the  left  hand  holding  a 
map  of  the  canal,  while  the  right  is  raised  in  grace- 
ful invitation  to  the  maritime  world  to  enter.  This 
piece  of  sculpture  is  the  onlymaterial  evidence  that 
such  a person  as  Ferdinand  de  Lesseps  ever  lived. 
The  legacy  to  his  family  was  that  of  a man  outliv- 
ing his  importance  and  fair  name. 

The  name  Port  Said  commemorates  the  viceroy 
granting  the  concession,  while  Ismail  the  Splendid 
has  his  name  affixed  to  the  midway  station  on  the 
canal,  Ismailia,  where  tourists  scramble  aboard 
the  train  bound  for  Cairo  and  the  Nile.  The  actual 
terminus  at  the  Suez  end  is  called  Port  Tewfik, 
after  Ismail’s  son  and  successor  in  the  khedivate. 
This  convenient  mode  of  perpetuating  the  names 
of  mighty  actors  in  the  Suez  drama  suggests  a cer- 
tain sentimentality,  but  the  present  generation 
cares  as  little  for  the  subject  as  for  a moldy  play- 
bill hanging  in  a dark  corner  of  a club-house. 


11 


East  of  Suez 


As  an  engineering  feat  the  construction  of  the 
canal  was  nothing  remarkable.  Any  youth  know- 
ing the  principles  of  running  lines  and  following 
the  course  of  least  resistance  might  have  planned 
it.  In  Cairo  and  Alexandria  it  is  flippantly  said 
that  De  Lesseps  traced  with  his  gold-headed  walk- 
ing-stick the  course  of  the  canal  in  the  sand,  while 
hundreds  of  thousands  of  unpaid  natives  scooped 
the  soil  out  with  their  hands.  The  work  was  com- 
pleted with  dredges  and  labor-saving  machinery, 
as  a fact.  The  enterprise  cost  practically  $100,000,- 
000— a million  dollars  a mile;  and  half  this  was 
employed  in  greasing  the  wheels  at  Constantinople 
and  Paris.  Probably  the  work  could  to-day  be  du- 
plicated, by  using  machinery  similar  to  that  em- 
ployed on  the  Chicago  Drainage  Canal,  for  $25,- 
000,000.  The  task  would  be  a digging  proposition, 
pure  and  simple. 

A cardinal  article  of  faith  of  the  legal  status  of 
the  canal  is  its  absolute  internationality.  By  its 
constitution  no  government  can  employ  it  in  war 
time  to  the  exclusion  or  disadvantage  of  another 
nation.  By  a convention  becoming  operative  in 
1888  the  canal  is  exempt  from  blockade,  and  ves- 
sels of  all  nations,  whether  armed  or  not,  are  for- 
ever to  be  allowed  to  pass  through  it  in  peace  or 
time  of  war. 

Critics  of  Britain’s  paramount  interest  in  India 
and  her  aspirations  in  the  Far  East,  neverthe- 
less, pretend  to  see  a decided  advantage  accru- 
ing from  England’s  control  of  things  Egyptian. 
They  claim  that  Britain’s  position  is  immensely 


12 


ITALIAN  WARSHIP  STEAMING  THROUGH  CANAI 


The  World’s  Turnstile  at  Suez 


strengthened  by  the  presence  in  Cairo  and  Alex- 
andria, within  a few  hours’  journey  of  the  canal, 
of  a half-dozen  regiments  of  redcoats  ready  for 
any  emergency.  Another  proof  of  England’s  in- 
terest in  the  great  universal  artery  of  travel  is  the 
maintaining  of  guard-ships  at  either  terminus, 
which  incidentally  keep  watchful  eyes  on  the  coal- 
bins  of  Suez  and  Port  Said.  A vessel  unofficially 
sunk  in  an  awkward  position  in  the  canal  might  de- 
lay for  weeks  the  arrival  of  an  unfriendly  fleet  in 
Asiatic  waters. 

The  British  government  and  British  trade  have 
fattened  tremendously  from  the  canal.  Being  the 
short-cut  to  England’s  treasure-house  in  the  East, 
it  is  more  or  less  equitable  that  Britain’s  flag  flies 
over  sixty  per  cent,  of  the  canal  traffic;  and,  fully 
as  important,  is  the  tremendous  increase  in  value 
of  the  shares  in  the  company  held  by  the  British 
government.  It  was  in  1875  that  Disraeli  secured 
to  his  countrymen  the  permanent  control  of  the 
canal  through  the  purchase  from  embarrassed 
Ismail  of  that  potentate’s  personal  holding  in 
the  undertaking.  This  midnight  negotiation,  con- 
ducted over  the  cable,  was  Disraeli ’s  most  material 
triumph  as  a statesman.  For  $20,000,000  he  pur- 
chased shares  having  now  a market  value  of  $135,- 
000,000.  A few  hours  after  the  consummation  of 
this  negotiation  a group  of  French  bankers,  then 
in  Cairo,  seeking  to  acquire  the  shares,  were 
amazed  to  learn  that  they  had  been  outwitted. 
A well-posted  newspaper  correspondent  at  the 
French  capital  had  informed  Britain’s  ambassa- 

15 


East  of  Suez 


dor  of  the  purpose  of  the  bankers’  visit  to  Egypt— 
and  astute  Disraeli  did  the  rest. 

This  transferred  from  France  to  her  rival 
across  the  channel  the  right  to  direct  the  policy  of 
De  Lesseps’s  creation.  But  French  susceptibilities 
have  always  been  considered  in  matters  connected 
with  the  conduct  of  the  enterprise— it  is  still  “La 
Compagnie  Universelle  du  Canal  Maritime  de 
Suez,  ’ ’ the  tariff  is  based  on  French  currency,  the 
principal  office  is  in  Paris,  and  the  official  lan- 
guage of  the  company  is  French. 

The  world  knows  the  Suez  marine  highway  only 
in  its  utilitarian  aspect,  and  America’s  interest 
therein  is  that  attaching  to  it  as  an  enterprise  fore- 
running Uncle  Sam’s  route  at  Panama.  Before 
many  years  have  passed  the  two  canals  will  to 
some  extent  be  rivals.  The  Suez  cutting  is  prac- 
tically ninety-nine  miles  in  length,  and  at  present 
121  feet  wide,  with  a depth  accommodating  craft 
drawing  twenty-six  feet  and  three  inches.  To  han- 
dle modern  battleships  and  the  increasing  size  of 
cargo  steamers,  both  depth  and  width  are  to  be  in- 
creased. Having  no  sharp  curvatures,  and  exca- 
vated at  a level  from  sea  to  sea,  ships  proceed  by 
night  assisted  by  electric  lights  with  the  same  fa- 
cility as  by  day.  The  time  consumed  in  transit  is 
from  fourteen  to  eighteen  hours.  Not  for  a decade 
has  a sailing  vessel  used  the  canal,  and  the  widest 
craft  ever  traversing  the  canal  was  the  dry-dock 
Dewey,  sent  under  tow  by  the  government  from 
the  United  States  to  the  Philippines.  The  tar- 
iff is  now  reduced  to  $1.70  per  ton  register,  and 

16 


The  World’s  Turnstile  at  Suez 


$2  for  every  passenger.  A ship’s  crew  pay  noth- 
ing. The  toll  for  a steamer  of  average  size,  like  a 
Peninsular  and  Orient  liner,  is  about  $10,000.  I 
first  passed  the  canal  in  a yacht  of  the  New  York 
Yacht  Club,  for  which  the  tax  was  $400,  and  the 
last  time  I made  the  transit  was  in  a Gerrnan- 
Lloyd  mail  steamer  which  paid  $7,000  for  ton- 
nage and  passengers. 

The  canal’s  value  to  the  commerce  of  the  world 
is  sufficiently  proved  by  the  saving  of  distance 
effected  by  it,  as  compared  with  the  route  around 
the  Cape  of  Good  Hope.  By  the  latter  the  distance 
between  England  and  Bombay  is  10,860  miles, 
by  the  canal  4,620  miles,  and  from  New  York  to 
the  leading  ports  of  India  the  Cape  route  is  about 
11,500  miles,  while  by  the  canal  the  journey  is 
shortened  to  7,900  miles.  How  rapidly  the  traffic 
attracted  by  the  economy  in  distance  thus  effected 
has  developed,  is  best  illustrated  by  the  following 
statement,  taken  quinquennially  from  the  com- 
pany’s returns: 


Year 

Steamers 

Net  Tonnage 

Receipts  in  Francs 

1871  

765 

761,467 

7,595,385 

1876  

. . . . 1,457 

2,069,771 

27,631,455 

1881 

. . . . 2,727 

4,136,779 

47,193,880 

1886  

, . . . 3,100 

5,767,655 

54,771,075 

1891 

. . . . 4,206 

8,699,020 

83,421,500 

1896  

. . . . 3,407 

8,594,307 

79,652,175 

1901 

. . . . 3,699 

10,823,840 

100,386,397 

1906  

. . . . 3,780 

11,750,000 

103,700,000 

The  Suez  company  pays  enormously,  and  more 
than  half  the  current  earnings  go  to  the  posses- 

17 


East  of  Suez 


sors  of  the  several  grades  of  bonds  and  shares. 
Great  Britain  is  the  preponderating  user  of  the 
canal,  with  Germany  a poor  second.  Holland,  due 
to  proprietorship  of  Dutch  India,  is  third  in  the 
list,  and  the  nation  of  De  Lesseps  is  fourth.  The 
United  States  stands  near  the  foot  of  the  roll  of 
patrons,  being  only  represented  by  an  occasional 
warship,  transport  going  to  or  coming  from  the 
Philippines,  or  a touring  yacht.  It  is  a pathetic 
fact  that  our  country,  paramount  producer  of  the 
world,  has  not  been  represented  for  nearly  a 
decade  by  the  Stars  and  Stripes  over  a commer- 
cial craft  in  the  Suez  canal.  Cargoes  go  or  come 
between  American  ports  and  those  of  the  Orient, 
of  course,  but  they  are  borne  in  British  bottoms 
or  those  having  register  in  other  foreign  nations. 
Fifteen  or  sixteen  years  ago  England  was  repre- 
sented in  Suez  statistics  by  seventy-five  per  cent,  of 
the  total  traffic ; but  her  proportion  has  decreased 
until  it  is  now  under  sixty  per  cent.  Kaiser  Wil- 
liam making  a systematic  fight  for  new  markets 
in  China  and  throughout  Australasia,  the  statis- 
tics of  Germany  in  canal  traffic  are  slowly  advanc- 
ing. 

At  present,  with  the  Suez  enterprise  in  opera- 
tion thirty-eight  years,  the  average  number  of 
ships  using  the  waterway  is  approximately  ten 
each  day.  This  is  one  vessel  every  two  hours  and 
thirty-five  minutes  during  the  twenty-four  hours 
—meaning  an  eastbound  craft  every  five  hours 
and  ten  minutes,  and  a westbound  every  five 
hours  and  ten  minutes. 

18 


The  World’s  Turnstile  at  Suez 


The  idea  of  wedding  the  Atlantic  and  the  Pa- 
cific must  have  been  original  with  the  first  ob- 
servant and  intelligent  person  viewing  the  two 
oceans  from  the  hills  of  the  Central-American 
isthmus.  Presumably  he  was  a Spanish  adven- 
turer, and  the  time  practically  four  hundred 
years  ago.  A century  before  the  landing  on  Ameri- 
can soil  of  the  Pilgrim  Fathers,  explorers  were 
informing  Charles  V of  Spain  of  the  opportunity 
supplied  by  nature  to  connect  the  waters  of  the 
two  oceans.  In  1550,  one  Galvao,  a Portuguese 
navigator,  wrote  a book  to  prove  the  feasibility  of 
an  artificial  connection  between  the  Atlantic  and 
the  Pacific;  and  in  1780  a scientific  commission 
from  Spain  studied  the  three  Central-Ameri- 
can routes— -Panama,  San  Bias,  and  Nicaragua. 
These  are  simple  facts  to  be  pondered  over  by 
busy  people  who  may  possibly  be  in  doubt  as  to 
whether  the  “father”  of  the  isthmian  enterprise 
was  De  Lesseps,  Theodore  Roosevelt,  or  Admiral 
Walker. 

But  it  required  a knowledge  of  practical  geog- 
raphy to  learn  that  from  Colon  to  Panama  by 
sea  is  eight  thousand  miles,  instead  of  forty-seven 
across  country— and  it  took  a dauntless  American 
President  to  demand  that  his  government  con- 
struct a national  water  route  across  the  isthmus 
at  Panama,  and  to  point  the  way  to  that  end ; and 
this  was  done  against  potent  opposition  to  any 
canal,  and  expressed  preference  of  powerful 
statesmen  for  the  unfeasible  Nicaraguan  project. 

It  may  be  profitable  for  enthusiasts  jumping  at 

19 


East  of  Suez 


the  conclusion  that  the  American  canal  will  pay 
from  its  opening,  to  study  the  returns  of  the  Suez 
enterprise,  the  first  full  year  of  whose  operation 
(1870)  showed  gross  takings  of  only  $1,031,365 
from  tolls  levied  upon  486  vessels.  Speaking  gen- 
erally, a shipper  sends  his  cargo  by  way  of  Suez 
only  when  3,000  miles  at  least  of  ocean  steaming 
may  be  saved— this  is  the  approximate  economy 
effected  by  the  great  turnstile  between  West  and 
East,  counting  time,  fuel,  wages  and  other  ex- 
penses. It  may  be  accepted  as  a concrete  fact  that 
the  employment  of  any  canal  by  commerce  must 
ever  depend  upon  economic  considerations. 

Already  acknowledging  our  commercial  pre- 
dominance, Europeans  are  not  blind  to  the  real 
purpose  of  the  Panama  Canal.  But  it  should  be 
borne  in  mind  that  whenever  it  is  an  open  choice 
between  the  canal  toll  and  the  equivalent  of  time 
at  sea,  the  Briton  will  be  slow  to  decide  in  favor 
of  contributing  to  the  resources  of  a nation  rising 
in  brief  time  to  commercial  premiership ; and 
Frenchmen,  economists  by  nature,  will  take  a sim- 
ilar view,  as  will  Germans,  and  shippers  of  other 
nations.  Expressed  in  the  fewest  words,  the  em- 
ployment of  the  Panama  route  will  be  governed 
exclusively  by  self-interest,  computed  from  the 
standpoint  of  material  economy;  sentimentality 
will  bring  not  one  ship  to  Uncle  Sam  as  a patron 
—unless  it  be  an  American  ship. 

Suez  will  always  be  favored  by  European  ship- 
masters determining  routes  for  cargoes  in  which 
Panama  and  Suez  present  advantages  practically 


20 


The  World’s  Turnstile  at  Suez 


equal ; probably  the  expense  of  a few  hundred 
miles  additional  travel  would  not  cause  them  to 
break  from  the  old  route,  by  which  there  is  no 
risk  of  accident  or  delay  from  canal-locks.  A con- 
siderable percentage  of  the  oversea  carrying 
trade  controlled  by  British  bottoms  is  geographi- 
cally independent  of  canals,  and  will  always  be. 
For  example,  the  bulk  of  traffic  to  and  from  the 
west  coast  of  South  America— the  rich  nitrate 
trade  of  Iquique  and  Valparaiso— will  not  ordi- 
narily be  altered  by  the  Panama  Canal.  The  econ- 
omy of  distance  from  the  latter  port  to  England 
and  the  Continent  by  the  canal  being  only  about 
1,500  miles,  this  traffic,  except  under  unusual 
circumstances,  will  continue  as  long  as  it  goes  in 
British  vessels  to  round  the  extremity  of  South 
America. 

Singapore  will  be  the  Asiatic  port  differentia- 
ting the  attracting  power  of  the  Panama  and  Suez 
canals,  speaking  from  the  basis  of  Atlantic  and 
Gulf  ports  as  points  of  origin  or  destination.  Car- 
goes for  places  west  of  the  105th  degree  of  east 
longitude  will  logically  be  sent  through  the  Medi- 
terranean and  the  Suez  Canal.  But  the  area  east 
of  the  Singapore  degree  of  longitude  is  teeming 
with  opportunity  for  Panama  cargoes.  The  isth- 
mian short  cut  to  Oceanica  and  Asia,  comprising 
the  coastal  section  of  China’s  vast  empire, 
enterprising  Japan,  the  East  Indies,  Australia, 
New  Zealand,  and  our  own  Philippine  archipelago, 
is  the  world’s  most  potential  area.  The  awakened 
Orient  can  use  American  products  to  practically 


2 


21 


East  of  Suez 


limitless  extent.  One  third  of  the  trade  of  these 
lands  would  make  America  great  as  a world-pro- 
vider, and  could  be  secured  if  we  embarked  seri- 
ously in  an  effort  to  obtain  it.  Students  of  eco- 
nomics have  never  admitted  the  logic  of  America ’s 
sending  cotton  to  England  to  be  there  converted 
into  fabrics  clothing  half  the  people  of  the  East. 

Let  the  reader,  content  in  belief  that  our  manu- 
factures have  an  extensive  use  in  the  outer  world, 
because  America  heads  the  list  of  exporting  na- 
tions, investigate  the  subject,  and  his  reward  will 
be  to  learn  that  we  export  only  a trifle  more  than 
six  per  cent,  of  what  we  manufacture.  Let  him 
also  study  the  statistics  of  our  commerce  with 
South  America,  natural  products  and  manufac- 
tures of  every  sort— they  are  replete  with  aston- 
ishing facts.  To  discover  that  our  exports  to  the 
southern  continent  do  not  equal  $2  per  capita  of 
South  America’s  population  will  surprise  the  in- 
vestigator, doubtless;  and  that  the  volume  of 
trade  is  overwhelmingly  with  England  and  Ger- 
many will  likewise  be  disconcerting.  South  Amer- 
ica has  40,000,000  people;  but  Mexico’s  13,500,000 
inhabitants  buy  nearly  as  much  from  Uncle  Sam 
as  the  South  Americans.  We  now  sell  Canadians 
products  averaging  $30  per  capita  annually. 

The  reason  for  the  startling  disparity  in  the 
statistics  of  trade  intercourse  with  our  adjoining 
neighbors,  Canada  and  Mexico,  and  oversea  South 
America,  is  obviously  the  lack  of  transportation 
facilities  under  the  American  flag;  and  the  adage 
that  “trade  follows  the  flag”  has  earned  more 


22 


The  World’s  Turnstile  at  Suez 

significance  than  attaches  to  a mere  figure  of 
speech.  We  pay  South  America  yearly,  let  it  be 
known,  about  $120,000,000  for  coffee,  wool,  hides 
and  other  raw  products;  and  the  major  share  of 
this  money  is  expended  in  Europe  for  the  necessi- 
ties and  luxuries  of  life.  This  is  inequitable,  to  say 
the  least,  and  should  be  remedied.  Uncle  Sam 
must  look  to  the  Orient,  as  well,  and  seek  to  make 
China  his  best  customer.  Every  nation  in  Europe 
whose  foreign  trade  is  worth  considering  exploits 
foreign  countries  in  the  thorough  manner  of  a 
great  commercial  house— getting  business  by  the 
most  productive,  not  the  easiest,  methods.  In  fre- 
quent magazine  articles  I have  insisted  that  the 
isthmian  canal,  “destined  to  make  the  United 
States  the  trade  arbiter  of  the  world,”  could 
never  be  expected  to  “pay”  directly.  The  artifi- 
cial waterway  is  to  cost  a vast  deal  of  money ; 
with  the  payments  to  the  French  company  and  to 
the  republic  of  Panama,  added  to  the  sum  neces- 
sary to  the  completion  of  the  work,  Uncle  Sam’s 
expenditure  cannot  be  less  than  $225,000,000!  It 
will  probably  be  more.  A private  incorporation 
embarked  in  the  enterprise  would  hold  that  the  in- 
vestment was  entitled  to  five  per  cent,  interest, 
say,  and  in  time  be  funded.  The  money  of  the  na- 
tion, embarked  in  a project  distinctly  commercial, 
merits  a reasonable  rate  of  income  or  benefit- 
four  per  cent,  certainly.  To  operate  the  canal 
with  the  expensive  up-keep  essential  to  a region  of 
torrential  rains,  cannot  be  less  than  $4,000,000  an- 
nually; if  the  Chagres  Kiver  refuses  to  be  confined 

23 


East  of  Suez 


in  bounds,  the  cost  will  be  greater.  The  items  of 
yearly  expense  figured  here  total  $13,000,000— a 
sum  to  be  regarded  as  the  very  minimum  of  the 
cost  of  maintaining  and  operating  the  canal. 

Optimistic  students  of  ocean  transportation  sta- 
tistics say  the  canal  will  draw  10,000,000  tons  of 
shipping  a year;  others,  conservative  of  opinion, 
say  half  this  volume.  Taking  the  mean  of  these 
estimates,  I hazard  the  statement  that  six  years 
after  the  canal  is  opened,  the  tonnage  will  be 

7.500.000.  The  Suez  Canal  was  operated  more 
than  thirty  years  before  its  business  aggregated 

10.000. 000  tons;  and  to  attract  this  volume,  sev- 
eral reductions  in  tolls  were  necessary.  The 
American  government  cannot  properly  levy  a 
heavier  tribute  at  Panama  than  is  demanded  at 
Suez,  for  the  fact  is,  our  canal  will  not  be  as  essen- 
tial as  that  uniting  Europe  and  the  East.  A like 
tariff  would  produce  for  Uncle  Sam,  on  the  hy- 
pothesis of  a business  of  7,500,000  tons,  only  $12,- 
750,000  a year;  a higher  tariff  would  probably 
produce  less.  And  here  is  an  unpalatable  truthlet 
— Panama’s  earnings  from  passengers  can  never 
be  considerable,  compared  with  that  constant  eb- 
bing and  flowing  of  humanity  between  the  home 
countries  of  Europe  and  their  dependencies  in 
Asia,  Africa  and  Australasia.  As  a highway  of 
travel,  Panama  can  never  have  a quarter  of  the 
income  from  passengers  as  that  yearly  accruing  to 
the  Suez  company.  It  may  be  unpopular  to  here 
record  the  opinion  that  the  direct  increment  of 
the  American  canal  cannot  for  many  years  yield 


CAROO  STEAMER  IN  THE  CANAL  AT  KILOMETER  133 


The  World’s  Turnstile  at  Suez 


what  in  a commercial  enterprise  could  be  called  a 
profit. 

The  way  to  compel  the  canal  to  pay  indirectly  is 
to  make  it  incidental  to  the  development  of  a 
mighty  commercial  marine,  that  will  carry  Ameri- 
can products  to  present  foreign  markets,  and  to 
new  markets,  under  the  Stars  and  Stripes.  This 
accomplished,  the  United  States  will  indisputably 
be  the  trade  arbiter  of  the  universe.  With  oper- 
ations under  way  on  the  isthmus,  is  not  the  time 
propitious  for  popular  discussion  throughout  the 
nation,  and  in  official  Washington,  how  best  to 
create  the  commerce  that  will  make  the  Panama 
Canal  a success  from  its  opening? 

We  have  populated  the  country,  developed  re- 
sources of  field,  forest  and  mine,  and  devised 
matchless  ways  of  translating  natural  products 
into  finished  articles  appealing  to  all  mankind. 
Now,  let  us  cease  sending  these  products  of  soil  and 
workshop  to  market  in  British  ships;  let  us  for- 
ward them  in  vessels  constructed  in  American 
shipyards,  thereby  making  the  transaction  inde- 
pendently American.  Already  have  we  produced 
ocean  carriers  equal  to  the  best;  while  American 
war-ships,  native  from  keel  to  topmast  truck,  are 
the  envy  of  the  world. 

Not  for  a decade  has  a commercial  vessel  under 
the  American  flag  passed  the  Suez  Canal,  I have 
stated.  But  the  time  was  when  Uncle  Sam’s 
ensign  was  the  emblem  oftenest  seen  in  foreign 
harbors. 

In  but  one  department  of  natural  growth  is  the 

27 


East  of  Suez 


United  States  backward— shipping,  in  its  broad 
and  commercial  acceptance.  To  promote  it  should 
now  be  the  plan  of  both  political  parties. 

Our  canal  can  never  pay  until  we  enter  as  ship- 
owners into  competition  with  Europe’s  trading  na- 
tions, and  these  possess  a material  interest  in  the 
Suez  undertaking,  be  it  remembered.  The  com- 
mercial fleet  at  present  under  the  American  flag 
could  not  pay  a tenth  of  Panama’s  operating  ex- 
penses. When  we  seriously  embark  upon  the  work 
of  creating  a great  merchant  marine,  we  are  go- 
ing to  rouse  spirited  opposition.  Englishmen, 
Germans,  and  Frenchmen  will  not  like  it ; and  Eu- 
ropeans cannot  be  expected  to  take  any  interest  in 
the  welfare  of  our  national  canal,  and  all  may 
object  to  fattening  the  treasury  of  a country  that 
is  their  trade  competitor.  These  facts,  insignifi- 
cant as  they  may  seem,  prove  in  reality  the  need 
for  supplying  hundreds  of  ocean  carriers  under 
the  same  flag  as  that  flying  over  the  canal  zone. 

By  the  time  the  canal  is  opened,  the  United 
States  will  have  100,000,000  inhabitants;  and  ag- 
riculture, assisted  by  ordinary  methods  and  by  ir- 
rigation, will  have  developed  to  an  extent  making 
our  commodities  dictators  of  supply  and  price.  By 
that  time,  sea  transportation  cannot  be  regarded 
as  a competitor  of  transcontinental  railway  sys- 
tems that  have  done  much  toward  making  the 
country  what  it  is:  water  transportation  will  be 
found  a necessary  adjunct  to  rail  facilities,  reliev- 
ing the  roads  of  a fraction  of  their  through  traffic. 

To  restore  the  Stars  and  Stripes  to  the  seas  will 

28 


The  World’s  Turnstile  at  Suez 


require  years  of  earnest  effort,  much  debating  in 
the  halls  of  Congress,  a drastic  liberalizing  of 
marine  laws,  and  much  prodding  of  human  ener- 
gies by  editorial  writers. 

Suez  shareholders,  when  asked  by  Americans  if 
they  fear  any  rivalry  from  Panama,  reply:  “None 
at  all;  unless”— and  here  is  the  kernel  of  the  mat- 
ter—“your  countrypeople  find  a way  of  creating 
a mercantile  marine  coincidently  with  the  building 
of  the  canal.” 

With  unlimited  financial  resources  to  promote 
the  most  gigantic  of  modern  enterprises,  with  in- 
exhaustible raw  and  cultivated  products,  with  la- 
bor to  produce  any  conceivable  commodity,  the 
humiliating  fact  confronted  the  people  of  the 
United  States  a few  months  since  of  seeing  its  offi- 
cial delegates  to  the  Pan-American  Congress  at 
Rio  de  Janeiro  set  forth  in  a steamship  flying  the 
red  flag  of  Great  Britain. 

The  most  remarkable  accomplishment  in  the  ma- 
terial history  of  the  world  is  that  the  United  States 
secured  her  commercial  supremacy  without  pos- 
sessing a merchant  marine.  It  is  one  of  the  mar- 
vels of  modern  times,  surely. 


29 


CHAPTER  II 


Colombo,  ceylon's  cosmopolitan  seaport. 

A MODERN  man  of  business  might  believe 
that  Bishop  Heber  of  Calcutta  wove  into 
irresistible  verse  a tremendous  advertisement  for 
Ceylon  real  estate,  but  repelled  investors  by  a 
sweeping  castigation  of  mankind,  when  he  wrote : 

What  though  the  spicy  breezes 
Blow  soft  o’er  Ceylon’s  isle; 

Though  every  prospect  pleases, 

And  only  man  is  vile. 

In  tens  of  thousands  of  Christian  churches  the 
praises  of  Ceylon  are  thus  sung  every  Sunday,  and 
will  be  as  long  as  the  inhabitants  of  America  and 
Great  Britain  speak  the  English  language.  Some 
of  the  divine’s  statements,  to  be  acceptable  as  im- 
partial testimony,  require  modification;  for  the 
natural  charms  of  the  island  are  not  so  sweepingly 
perfect,  and  there  man  is  far  above  the  Asian  av- 
erage. Hymnists,  it  may  be  inferred,  write  with 
some  of  the  license  of  poets.  No  part  of  England’s 
great  realm,  nevertheless,  is  more  beautiful  than 
the  crown  colony  of  Ceylon  in  the  Indian  Ocean. 

30 


THE  JETTY  AT  COLOMBO 


Colombo,  Ceylon’s  Seaport 

An  Eastbound  traveler  during  the  long  run 
from  Aden  hears  much  of  the  incomparable  island 
of  palms,  pearls,  and  elephants;  and  every  wag- 
gish shipmate  haunts  smoke  room  and  ladies’  sa- 
loon waiting  for  the  opportunity  to  point  out  the 
lighthouse  on  Minecoy  Island  in  the  Maldives  as 
“the  Light  of  Asia.”  Four  hundred  miles  further 
and  your  good  ship  approaches  Colombo.  The 
great  breakwater,  whose  first  stone  was  laid  by 
Albert  Edward,  is  penetrated  at  last,  and  the  poly- 
glot and  universal  harbor  of  call  unfolds  like  a 
fan. 

There’s  music  within;  the  breezes  bring  proof 
of  this.  Surely,  it  is  Bishop  Heber’s  trite  stanzas 
repeated  in  unison  by  the  forgiving  populace— 
they  are  sung  everywhere,  and  why  not  in  Ceylon’s 
great  seaport?  The  ship  churns  forward  to  her 
moorings.  It  is  singing;  there  is  no  mistaking  it. 
But  the  air?  Does  it  deal  with  “spicy  breezes,” 
and  “pleasing  prospects?”  No;  it  is  a sort  of 
chant.  Listen  again.  Ah,  it  is  Lottie  Collins’s 
masterpiece,  not  Bishop  Heber’s:  it  is  “Ta-ra-ra 
boom  de-ay.”  And  the  chanters  are  dozens  of 
Britain’s  loyal  subjects,  youths  naked  and  black, 
lying  in  wait  to  induce  passengers  to  shower  coins 
into  the  sea  in  recompense  of  a display  of  diving 
from  catamarans  constructed  from  trunks  of 
palm-trees. 

If  asked  what  place  in  all  the  world  can  in  a day 
show  the  greatest  medley  of  humanity,  I should 
pronounce  in  favor  of  the  landing- jetty  at  Co- 
lombo. Scurrying  ashore  from  ocean  steamers  in 

33 


East  of  Suez 


launches,  in  jolly-boats  pulled  by  oars  fash- 
ioned like  huge  mustard-spoons,  or  in  outrigger 
canoes  that  glide  rapidly,  are  representatives  of 
every  nation  of  the  West,  of  China,  of  Japan— in 
fact,  of  every  division  of  God’s  footstool  having 
place  in  the  list  of  nations.  Being  the  great  port 
of  call  and  coaling  station  linking  Occident,  Orient 
and  Australasia,  a traveler  naturally  wants  to  in- 
spect the  place  and  stretch  his  legs  on  shore,  while 
his  ship  is  stocking  with  fuel  to  carry  it  to  Aden, 
Singapore  or  to  an  antipodean  port.  Tiffin  or  din- 
ner on  terra  firma  is  likewise  coveted  by  the  trav- 
eler with  appetite  jaded  by  weeks  of  sea-cooking. 
Ceylon’s  capital  teems  consequently  with  people 
hungry  for  a table  d’hote  meal,  a ’rickshaw  ride, 
and  the  indiscriminate  purchase  of  rubbishing 
cats-eye  and  sapphire  jewelry. 

The  conglomeration  of  people  on  the  prome- 
nade floor  of  the  jetty,  watching  voyagers  come 
and  go,  would  tend  to  make  a student  of  anthro- 
pology lose  his  mind.  Every  variety  of  man  of 
Ceylon,  practically  of  every  creed  and  caste  of  In- 
dia, even  of  all  Asia,  is  there,  and  a liberal  admix- 
ture of  Europeans  as  well. 

Leaning  over  the  hand-rail  all  humanity  appears 
equal  — for  sight-seeing  purposes,  certainly.  There 
are  gentle  Cingalese  men  with  hair  twisted  into  a 
knot  on  the  back  of  the  head  and  large  shell  comb 
on  the  crown,  Tamil  coolies  and  Hindus  in  profu- 
sion, of  course.  There  are  fat  Parsees  from  Bom- 
bay, and  Buddhist  priests  and  monks  in  yellow 
togas,  each  armed  with  palm-leaf  fan  and  um- 

34 


Colombo,  Ceylon’s  Seaport 

brella,  precisely  as  Gautama  Buddlia  left  his 
father’s  mansion  to  sow  the  religion  worshiped  by 
nearly  a third  of  the  people  of  the  earth.  A group 
of  lascars,  on  leave  from  a P.  & 0.  liner,  look  de- 
preciatingly on  nautical  brethren  from  colder 
climes.  There  are  Malays,  as  well,  obsequious 
Moormen  merchants,  and  haughty  Afghans  from 
beyond  the  “Roof  of  the  World,”  as  scholars  call 
the  Himalayas.  Here  and  there  are  broad-chested 
Arabs  from  Aden  way  and  the  Persian  Gulf,  tak- 
ing chances  on  the  announcement  of  a pearl  “fish- 
ery” by  the  government— divers,  who  may  secure 
a gem  of  price  in  an  hour’s  work,  or  may  return 
home  empty-handed.  Their  neighbors  on  the  plat- 
form are  seafarers  coming  with  the  embassy  from 
the  Sultan  of  the  Maidive  Islands,  bringing  to  the 
governor  of  Ceylon  the  annual  tribute  sanctioned 
by  custom,  and  the  renewed  assurances  of  loyalty 
to  Edward  VII.  Close  by  them,  and  taking  a pro- 
found interest  in  a group  of  European  ladies  step- 
ping from  a launch  below,  are  three  black  girls  in 
the  garb  of  Catholic  Sisters  of  Charity,  whose 
chains  and  crucifixes  are  of  unusual  size. 

With  a conscious  air  of  proprietorship  of  the 
British  Empire,  khaki-clad  Tommy  Atkins  comes 
down  the  pier,  attended  by  the  inevitable  fox  ter- 
rier. Following  close  on  his  heels  is  a towering 
man  of  ebon  complexion,  with  three  stripes  of 
ashes  and  the  wafer  of  humility  on  his  forehead. 
He  is  barefooted,  and  his  solitary  garment  is  a 
piece  of  cotton  with  which  he  has  girded  his  loins ; 
he  is  abundantly  lacquered  with  cocoanut  oil,  to 

35 


East  of  Suez 


protect  him  from  contracting  a cold  from  the  too 
rigorous  “spicy  breezes”  of  Lanka’s  isle.  A 
stranger  would  say  he  was  a penitent  wayfarer  of 
God,  not  worth  the  smallest  coin  of  the  East.  In 
one  hand  he  carries  an  overfilled  valise,  and  in  the 
other  a sunshade  of  immaculate  white:  the  initia- 
ted recognize  him  to  be  a chettie,  easily  worth  lakhs 
of  rupees,  who  is  presumably  embarking  for  Ran- 
goon, and  there  to  purchase  a cargo  of  rice. 

Hark ! There  is  commotion  and  much  noise  at 
the  jetty  entrance.  Can  it  be  an  alarm  of  fire,  or 
have  the  customs  officials  at  the  gates  apprehended 
a flagrant  smuggler?  Oh,  no;  it  is  merely  Great 
Britain  arriving  on  the  scene  in  the  person  of  a 
smart-looking  tea-planter  who  has  honked  down 
in  his  motor-car  to  see  a comrade  off  on  the  mail 
steamer;  incidentally,  some  of  the  noise  proceeds 
from  a group  of  sailors  on  leave  from  a battleship 
who  are  wrangling  with  ’rickshaw  men  as  to  pro- 
per payment  for  having  been  hauled  about  the  city 
on  a sight-seeing  tour.  And  so  it  goes  in  Colombo. 
Each  day  presents  a picture  not  to  be  adequately 
described  by  a less  gifted  writer  than  Kipling. 

Colombo  is  the  westermost  town  of  that  great  di- 
vision of  Asia  wherein  subject  races— black,  brown 
and  yellow— haul  the  white  man  in  jinrickshaws. 
No  institution  of  the  East  stamps  the  superiority 
of  the  European  more  than  this  menial  office  of  the 
native.  Probably  every  American  when  brought 
face  to  face  with  the  matter  says  manfully  that  he 
will  never  descend  to  employing  a fellow  creature 
to  run  between  shafts  like  an  animal,  that  he  (visi- 

36 


HINDU  SILVERSMITHS,  COLOMBO 


Colombo,  Ceylon’s  Seaport 

tor  from  a land  where  rights  of  mankind  are  equal 
and  constitutional)  may  be  spared  from  footweari- 
ness  under  a tropic  sun.  It  is  a noble  impulse— but 
weak  man  is  easily  tempted.  Hence,  you  decide  to 
try  the  ’rickshaw  just  once. 

The  sensation  is  found  to  be  agreeable,  surpris- 
ingly so.  Your  fellow  mortal,  you  perceive,  is 
dripping  with  perspiration  under  the  awful  heat 
of  the  sun,  while  beneath  the  hood  of  the  vehicle 
you  are  cool  and  comfortable.  Then  you  yield  to 
the  savage  defects  of  your  moral  make-up — and 
decide  never  to  walk  another  yard  in  the  East,  not 
when  a ’rickshaw  is  to  be  had.  The  habit  comes 
as  easily  as  drinking,  or  anything  that  your  con- 
science and  bringing-up  tell  you  is  not  quite  right, 
although  enjoyable. 

The  ’rickshaw  in  Colombo  is  a splendid  conve- 
nience. The  runner’s  rights  are  as  loyally  pro- 
tected as  those  of  his  employer,  and  he  readily  cov- 
ers six  miles  an  hour  at  a swinging  gait.  If  his  ve- 
hicle has  rubber  tires  and  ball-bearings  the  labor 
is  not  severe.  The  man  might  have  a harder  voca- 
tion with  smaller  pay. 

Colombo  has  hotels  that  would  satisfy  in  Europe 
or  America— one,  the  Grand  Oriental,  is  spoken  of 
as  the  most  comfortable  hostelry  between  Cairo 
and  San  Francisco.  To  refer  to  it  by  its  full  name 
stamps  the  newcomer  and  novice  at  traveling— 
throughout  half  the  world  it  is  known  familiarly 
as  the  “G.  0.  H.”  Two  miles  from  Colombo, 
gloriously  situated  on  the  sea-front,  the  Galle 
Face  Hotel  is  fashionable,  cool  and  quiet,  but  lack- 

39 


East  of  Suez 


ing  in  the  characteristic  of  being  an  international 
casino— which  assuredly  the  “G.  0.  H.”  is.  Tiffin 
or  dinner  is  an  interesting  function  at  a Colombo 
hotel,  for  one  never  knows  who  or  what  his  table 
mates  may  be.  In  the  East  every  man  who  travels 
is  assumed  to  be  somebody.  Hence  you  suspect 
your  vis-a-vis  at  dinner  to  be  the  governor  of  a col- 
ony somewhere  in  the  immeasurable  Orient,  or  a 
new  commander  for  Saigon,  or  perhaps  a Frank- 
fort banker  going  to  China  to  conclude  the  terms  of 
a new  loan.  If  your  neighbor  at  table  is  specially 
reserved,  and  gives  his  orders  like  one  accustomed 
to  being  obeyed,  you  fancy  him  to  be  an  accom- 
plished diplomatist,  very  likely  having  in  his 
pocket  the  draft  of  a treaty  affecting  half  the  peo- 
ple of  the  Far  East.  No  one  seems  ever  to  suspect 
his  confreres  of  being  mere  business  men.  And  the 
ladies— well,  they  may  be  duchesses  or  dress- 
makers no  longer  content  with  traveling  “on  the 
Continong”;  nobody  cares  which.  If  they  are 
very  well  gowned,  probably  they  are  the  latter. 

An  army  of  waiters  clad  in  spotless  and  snowy 
uniforms  with  red  facings  and  shining  buttons  set 
before  you  dishes  you  never  heard  of.  Some  are 
satisfying  in  the  extreme;  but  these  waiters,  can 
they  be  described  as  in  uniform?  True,  their 
garments  are  alike,  but  the  head-gear  is  of  infinite 
variety.  According  to  caste  or  nationality  each 
proclaims  himself.  But  look  once  more;  there  is 
uniformity,  for  all  are  barefooted. 

Wonderful  fellows  these  Easterns.  The  native 
hotel  band,  led  by  a wandering  European,  plays 

40 


A HIGH  PRIEST  OF  BUDDHA 


Colombo,  Ceylon’s  Seaport 

Sousa’s  marches  and  “Hiawatha,”  yes,  even 
“Tammany,”  with  accuracy;  and  the  cooks  pre- 
pare dishes  with  French  names,  make  vin  blanc 
and  Hollandaise  sauces  worthy  of  Delmonico  or 
Ritz,  and  this  without  permitting  the  palate  to 
guide  them.  If  they  tasted  food  concocted  for 
Christians  a million  kinds  of  perdition  might  be 
their  punishment.  Music  may  be  mechanical,  as 
it  is  claimed  to  be,  but  not  cooking.  How  do  the 
gastronomic  experts  of  pagan  Asia  acquire  their 
skill  ? 

Considering  that  the  Ceylon  capital  is  only  four 
hundred  miles  north  of  the  equator,  the  heat  is 
never  extremely  oppressive.  One’s  energies  there, 
nevertheless,  are  not  what  they  are  farther  north 
or  at  higher  elevations.  Kandy,  the  ancient  up- 
country  capital,  is  cooler,  and  Nuwara  Eliya,  in 
the  mountains,  is  actually  cold  at  night.  When 
white  people  do  anything  in  Colombo— work,  at- 
tend church,  play  bridge,  or  billiards— a native 
keeps  them  moderately  comfortable  with  swing- 
ing punkahs.  Some  hotels  and  residential  bunga- 
lows have  discarded  punkahs  for  mechanical  fans ; 
but  the  complaint  is  that  the  electricity  costs  more 
than  the  punkah-wallah— the  fan-boy  of  the  East. 
“Ah,  yes;  but  your  wallah  frequently  falls  asleep 
at  his  work,”  you  remark  to  the  resident.  “True, 
and  your  electricity  frequently  fails  us,”  is  the 
reply. 

Pear-shaped  Ceylon,  separated  from  India  by 
only  fifty  miles  of  water,  is  three  fourths  the  size 
of  Ireland,  and  its  population  3,600,000.  Seventy- 

43 


East  of  Suez 


five  per  cent,  of  the  people  are  Cingalese,  and 
their  language  a dialect  harking  back  to  Sanskrit. 
The  Cingalese  are  mostly  Buddhists,  with  a 
sprinkling  of  Roman  Catholics,  the  latter  religion 
having  been  left  in  the  land  by  its  one-time  Por- 
tuguese rulers.  The  Tamils,  numbering  a million, 
are  not  native  to  the  island,  like  the  Cingalese, 
but  have  come  from  southern  India  as  laborers  on 
coffee  and  tea  estates ; they  are  chiefly  Hindus, 
although  thousands  have  been  converted  to  the 
Christian  faith.  The  Mohammedan  Moormen,  liv- 
ing on  the  coast,  approximate  a quarter  of  a 
million  in  number.  Europeans  of  all  nationali- 
ties, not  including  the  British  troops,  total  only 
6,500,  a percentage  of  the  island ’s  human  family  to 
be  computed  in  fractions. 

The  Cingalese  seen  chiefly  in  the  towns  wear 
their  long  hair  arranged  like  a woman’s,  and 
around  their  heads  a large,  semicircular  comb  of 
shell,  as  has  been  said.  The  comb  has  nothing  to 
do  with  religion  or  caste— contrary  to  what  a 
visitor  is  usually  told;  it  merely  announces  the 
wearer  to  be  not  of  the  coolie  class,  who  carry 
sacks  of  rice  and  cases  of  merchandise  on  their 
heads.  Half  the  people  of  Ceylon  wear  no  head- 
gear,  and  not  two  per  cent,  know  what  it  is  to  wear 
shoes. 

Colombo’s  population  is  about  160,000.  The 
capital  is  a handsome  city,  with  communities  on 
seafront,  on  the  shores  of  a sinuous  lake,  and 
ranging  inland  for  miles  through  cinnamon  gar- 
dens and  groves  of  cocoanut-palms.  Queen’s 

44 


REPRESENTATION  OP  BUDDHA’S  TOOTH,  COLOMBO  MUSEUM 


Colombo,  Ceylon’s  Seaport 

House,  where  the  governor  resides,  is  a rambling 
pile.  The  general  post-office  is  the  best  building- 
in  the  capital,  and  the  museum  and  Prince’s  club, 
close  by,  are  entitled  to  notice.  The  hard  red-soil 
roads  of  the  city  extend  for  miles  into  the  palm 
forests,  and  are  equal  to  any  in  the  world.  Gov- 
ernment officials  and  European  commercial  people 
live  in  handsome  suburban  bungalows  smothered 
amid  superb  foliage  trees  and  flowering  shrubs 
and  vines. 

What  were  called  the  maritime  provinces  of 
Ceylon  were  ruled  by  the  Dutch  until  1796.  But 
in  that  year  England  supplanted  Holland,  and  in 
1815  she  secured  control  of  the  entire  island  by 
overthrowing  the  Kandyan  kingdom,  for  a long 
time  confining  European  invasion  to  the  island’s 
seaboard.  Ceylon  costs  Britain  little  worry  and 
practically  no  expenditure.  Strategically  the  is- 
land is  valueless,  save  the  benefit  accruing  to 
England  in  controlling  if  need  be  the  enormous 
coal  heaps  of  Colombo,  and  the  maintenance  there 
of  a graving  dock  capable  of  handling  the  biggest 
battleship.  Four  hundred  miles  of  government 
railways  earn  a tremendous  profit,  and  moderate 
import  and  export  duties  on  commodities  keep  the 
colonial  cash-box  well  lined. 

As  in  other  Asiatic  countries,  the  staple  food  is 
rice.  Strange  to  say,  Ceylon  produces  of  this  only 
half  what  is  demanded  by  the  people.  Hence, 
it  is  necessary  to  import  eight  million  bushels  from 
India  and  Malay  regions,  costing  approximately 
$5,000,000.  On  the  other  hand,  the  island  sends  to 

47 


s 


East  of  Suez 


Europe  and  America  annually  $21,000,000  worth 
of  tea,  besides  considerable  quantities  of  rubber, 
cocoanut-oil,  cacao,  and  plumbago.  Ceylon’s  crude 
rubber  commands  the  highest  price,  and  is  a crop 
growing  by  leaps  and  bounds.  It  is  estimated  that 
eight  hundred  million  cocoanuts  are  grown  yearly 
in  Ceylon.  An  item  in  the  list  of  exports  is  ele- 
phants. These  go  to  India  as  beasts  of  burden  and 
pleasure,  and  the  government  collects  two  hundred 
rupees  for  every  elephant  sent  from  the  island. 

There  is  a possibility  of  two  great  events  any 
springtime  in  Ceylon,  and  the  prospect  of  either 
occurring  is  a theme  of  endless  small  talk  in  the 
offices  and  bungalow  homes  of  everybody  connec- 
ted with  ‘ ‘ Government.  ’ ’ One  is  the  elephant  kraal, 
planned  for  the  edification  of  His  Excellency  the 
Governor  and  a few  officials  and  visitors  of  distinc- 
tion, who,  from  cages  in  trees  at  elevated  points  in- 
suring safety,  look  down  upon  the  driving  in  of 
converging  herds  of  elephants.  When  an  earth- 
strewn  flooring  of  bamboo  gives  way  and  the  mon- 
archs  of  the  jungle  are  cast  into  a stockaded  pit, 
the  kraal  is  complete.  Then,  ordinarily,  the  Cey- 
lon treasury  undergoes  drafts  for  forage,  until  an 
authorized  functionary  negotiates  the  sale  of  the 
animals  to  maharajahs  and  lesser  worthies  up  in 
India. 

A kraal  occurs  every  four  or  five  years,  or  when 
a British  royalty  happens  in  Ceylon.  Each  gov- 
ernor is  entitled  by  custom  to  the  semi-royal  honor 
at  least  once  during  his  incumbency.  The  kraal  is 
an  enterprise  usually  paying  for  itself,  unless 

48 


Colombo,  Ceylon’s  Seaport 

there  be  a glut  in  the  elephant  market.  The  last 
kraal  failed  dismally,  nevertheless,  but  for  a very 
different  reason.  The  drive  had  been  so  successful 
that  the  stockade  was  full  to  overflowing  with  levi- 
athan beasts  trumpeting  their  displeasure  and 
wrath.  While  the  dicker  for  their  sale  in  India  was 
proceeding,  they  became  boisterously  unruly,  and, 
breaking  down  their  prison  of  palm-tree  trunks, 
scampered  away  to  forest  and  jungle,  without  so 
much  as  saying  “thank  you”  for  weeks  of  gorg- 
ing on  rations  paid  for  out  of  the  public  cash-box. 
And  this  was  the  reason  why  the  kraal  arranged 
for  last  year  was  abandoned,  after  hundreds  of  na- 
tives had  been  busy  for  weeks  in  “driving  in” 
from  every  up-country  district— to  jeopardize 
good  money  was  deemed  not  in  keeping  with  the 
principles  of  good  finance  by  certain  material 
Britons  responsible  for  the  insular  exchequer. 

The  popular  event,  coming  as  often  as  twice 
every  three  years,  is  the  pearl-fishery.  It  interests 
everybody  not  living  in  mountain  fastnesses,  and 
appeals  irresistibly  to  the  hearts  of  the  proleta- 
riat. Tricking  elephants  into  captivity  may  be  the 
sport  of  grandees,  but  the  chance  to  gamble  over 
the  contents  of  the  humble  oyster  of  the  East- 
ern seas  invites  participation  from  the  meekest 
plucker  of  tea-buds  on  Ceylon’s  hill-slopes  to  the 
lowliest  coolie  in  Colombo.  Verily,  the  pearl-fish- 
ery is  the  sensational  event  of  that  land  sung  of  by 
Bishop  Heber. 


49 


CHAPTER  III 


THE  LURE  OF  THE  PEARL 

rrMIE  bed  of  the  Gulf  of  Manar,  the  arm  of  the 
J-  Indian  Ocean  that  separates  Ceylon  from 
India,  has  given  the  world  more  pearls  than  all 
other  fisheries  combined,  for  it  has  been  pro- 
lific as  a pearling-ground  for  thousands  of 
years.  Pearling  in  the  gulf  was  an  occupa- 
tion hoary  with  age  before  the  dawn  of  Chris- 
tianity, for  history  tells  us  that  Mardis,  ad- 
miral of  Alexander  the  Great,  when  return- 
ing from  a voyage  having  to  do  with  the  Indian 
invasion,  traversed  the  strait  separating  Ceylon 
from  the  continent,  and  was  informed  of  the  im- 
portance of  the  pearl-banks  over  which  his  fleet 
was  passing.  The  great  sailor  was  specially  inter- 
ested in  the  manner  of  drilling  the  holes  in  pearls 
for  stringing,  which  was  probably  the  same  that  it 
is  to-day. 

In  the  exuberant  phraseology  of  the  Orient,  Cey- 
lon is  “the  pearl-drop  on  India’s  brow,”  and  the 
Gulf  of  Manar  is  “the  sea  abounding  in  pearls” 
and  “the  sea  of  gain.”  Ceylon  appeals  irresisti- 
bly to  any  possessor  of  the  wandering  foot,  for  it 
is  an  island  paradise.  It  is  well  governed,  of 

50 


The  Lure  of  the  Pearl 


course,  for  its  administration  is  that  of  a seasoned 
colony  of  Edward  VII ’s  realm,  and  the  guidance 
of  austere,  dignified  Britain  countenances  nothing- 
like  gambling  in  any  of  its  lands— oh,  dear,  no! 
State  lotteries  are  pretty  well  relegated  in  these 
times  to  Latin  countries,  everybody  knows. 

Yet  the  world’s  most  gigantic  gamble,  preg- 
nantly fruitful  with  chance  in  all  variations  and 
shadings,  is  unquestionably  the  Ceylon  pearl-fish- 
ery; compared  with  it,  any  state  lottery  pales  to  in- 
significance. From  the  taking  of  the  first  oyster  to 
the  draining  of  the  last  vatful  of  “matter,”  every 
step  is  attended  by  fickle  fortune ; and  never  is  the 
interest  of  the  people  of  Portugal  or  of  Mexico 
keener  over  a drawing  of  a lottery,  the  tickets  of 
which  may  have  been  sold  at  the  very  thresholds 
of  the  cathedrals,  than  is  that  of  the  natives  of 
Ceylon  and  southern  India  over  the  daily  results 
of  a Manar  fishery. 

Each  bivalve  is  a lottery  ticket ; it  may  contain  a 
gem  worthy  of  place  in  a monarch ’k  crown,  or  be  a 
seed  pearl  with  a mercantile  value  of  only  a few 
rupees.  Perhaps  one  oyster  in  a hundred  contains 
a pearl,  and  not  more  than  one  pearl  in  a hundred, 
be  it  known,  has  a value  of  importance.  Nature 
furnishes  the  sea,  pearling-banks,  oysters,  and  all 
therein  contained;  the  Ceylon  administration  con- 
ducts the  undertaking,  and  for  its  trouble  and 
trifling  outlay  exacts  a “rake-off”  of  two  thirds  of 
all  that  may  be  won  from  the  deep.  And  mere  man, 
the  brown  or  black  diver,  receives  for  his  daring 
and  enterprise  one  oyster  in  every  three  that  he 

51 


East  of  Suez 


brings  from  the  ocean’s  depths— and  his  earnings 
must  be  shared  with  boat-owner,  sailors,  attend- 
ants, and  assistants  almost  without  number. 

For  size  of  ‘ ‘ rake-off,  ’ ’ there  is  no  game  of  haz- 
ard in  the  world  offering  a parallel.  The  Ceylon 
government  used  to  exact  three  out  of  every  four 
oysters  brought  in,  the  current  tribute  of  two  out 
of  three  having  become  operative  only  a few  years 
since. 

It  should  be  known  that  the  pearl-bearing  oyster 
of  the  Indian  Ocean  is  only  remotely  related  to  the 
edible  variety  of  America  and  Europe.  It  is  the 
Margaritifera  vulgaris,  claimed  to  belong  to  the 
animal  kingdom,  and  not  to  the  fish  family,  and  is 
never  eaten.  The  eminent  marine  biologist  in  the 
service  of  the  Ceylon  government,  Professor  Hor- 
nell,  F.  L.  S.,  who  intimately  knows  the  habits 
of  the  pearl-oyster  of  the  East,  advances 
two  interesting  if  not  startling  premises.  One 
is  that  the  pearl  is  produced  as  a conse- 
quence of  the  presence  of  dead  bodies  of  a 
diminutive  parasitical  tapeworm  which  com- 
monly affects  the  Ceylon  bivalve.  The  living 
tapeworm  does  not  induce  pearl  formation.  The 
popular  belief  has  been  that  the  pearl  was  formed 
by  secretions  of  nacre  deposited  upon  a grain  of 
sand  or  other  foreign  particle  drawn  within  the 
oyster  th'rough  its  contact  with  the  sea’s  bottom. 
The  other  Hornell  assertion  is  that  the  oyster 
goeth  and  cometh  at  its  pleasure ; that  it  is  mobile 
and  competent  to  travel  miles  in  a few  weeks. 

Scientists  have  long  been  aware  that  the  pearl 

52 


MAP  OF  THE  GULF  OF  MANAR,  “ THE  SEA  ABOUNDING  IN  PEARLS 


The  Lure  of  the  Pearl 

shell-fish  possesses  locomotive  powers,  which  it 
uses  when  in  quest  of  food  or  protection,  and  to  es- 
cape impure  localities.  During  the  Dutch  occupa- 
tion of  Ceylon,  for  example,  there  was  a period  of 
several  years  when  the  oysters’  boycott  of  the 
Manar  banks  was  virtually  unanimous. 

It  is  an  accepted  fact  that  pearls  are  excretions 
of  superimposed  concentric  lamince  of  a peculiarly 
fine  and  dense  substance,  consisting  in  major  part 
of  carbonate  of  lime.  Linnaeus,  believing  in  the 
possibility  of  producing  pearls  by  artifice,  sug- 
gested the  collecting  of  mussels,  piercing  holes  in 
their  shells  to  produce  a wound,  and  bedding  them 
for  five  or  six  years  to  give  pearls  time  to  grow. 
The  Swedish  government  succeeded  in  producing 
pearls  of  a sort  by  this  process ; but  as  they  were 
of  trifling  value,  the  experiments  were  discon- 
tinued. 

Cunning  Chinese  and  Japanese  have  sought  of 
late  years  to  assist  or  improve  on  nature’s  pearl- 
making methods  by  inserting  tiny  shot  or  grains  of 
sand  between  the  mantle  and  the  shell,  which  in 
time  become  coated  with  nacre.  Not  long  since 
there  was  a movement  in  Japan  to  embark  in 
pearl  production  upon  a basis  wholly  commercial, 
and  its  promoters  discussed  it  as  they  might  a pro- 
ject for  supplying  a city  with  vegetables.  One  of 
the  claims  of  those  exploiting  the  venture  was  that 
they  could  keep  pace  with  fashion’s  changes  by 
supplying  pearls  of  any  shape,  pear,  oval,  or 
spherical.  This  has  been  accomplished  in  other 
countries,  and  European  and  American  dealers 

55 


East  of  Suez 


have  had  years  of  acquaintance  with  the  “as- 
sisted” pearl,  a showy  and  inexpensive  counter- 
feit, but  one  attaining  to  no  position  in  the  realm 
of  true  gems.  The  distinction  between  fine  pearls 
and  these  intrusive  nacre-coated  baubles,  allur- 
ingly advertised  as  “synthetic  pearls,”  has  been 
demonstrated  by  more  than  one  devotee  of  science. 

There  are  definite  rules  for  determining  when  a 
Ceylon  fishery  will  be  held,  for  twice  a year  the 
banks  are  systematically  examined  by  the  marine 
biologist,  and  estimates  made  of  the  number  of 
oysters  present  on  each  bank.  Whenever  their  age 
and  size  appear  to  warrant  the  step,  a sample  catch 
of  twenty  thousand  oysters  is  made  by  divers  em- 
ployed by  the  government,  and  a valuation  is 
formed  of  the  pearls  they  produce.  If  found  to 
average  ten  or  twelve  rupees1  to  a thousand  oys- 
ters, the  government  is  advised  to  proclaim  a fish- 
ery. Advertisements  are  then  published  through- 
out the  East,  especially  in  vernacular  papers 
reaching  the  Persian  Gulf  and  the  two  coasts  of 
southern  India,  at  the  instance  of  the  colonial  sec- 
retary’s office  at  Colombo.  These  detail  the  valua- 
tion of  the  sample  pearls,  area  of  beds  to  be  fished, 
and  the  estimated  number  of  oysters  likely  to  be 
available  upon  each.  The  advertisements  are 
printed  in  Cingalese,  Tamil,  and  English.  As  rap- 
idly as  information  can  spread,  it  becomes  known 
from  Karachi  to  Rangoon,  and  along  the  chain  of 


1 The  rupee  of  India  and  Ceylon  is  equal  to  32  cents  U.  S. 
A lakh  is  100,000. 

56 


The  Lure  of  the  Pearl 


seaports  of  the  Malay  states,  that  a fishery  is  to  be 
held.  Divers,  gem-buyers,  speculators,  money- 
lenders, petty  merchants,  and  persons  of  devious 
occupations,  make  speedy  arrangements  for  at- 
tending. Indian  and  Ceylon  coolies  flock  by  the 
thousand  to  the  coast  of  the  Northern  province, 
longing  to  play  even  humble  roles  in  the  great 
game  of  chance.  The  “tindals”  and  divers  pro- 
vide boats  and  all  essential  gear  for  the  work 
afloat ; while  ashore  the  government  supplies 
buildings  and  various  forms  of  labor  for  dealing 
with  the  curious  industry. 

It  is  during  the  calm  period  of  the  northeast 
monsoon,— February,  March  and  April,— when 
the  sea  is  flat  and  the  sky  is  bright  and  unflecked, 
that  the  fishery  is  carried  on.  The  line  of  banks— 
they  are  “paars,  ” in  the  languages  of  Ceylon— 
cover  an  extensive  submarine  plateau  off  the  is- 
land’s northwest  coast,  from  ancient  Hippuros 
southward  to  Negombo.  This  is  of  flat-surface 
rock,  irregularly  carpeted  with  coarse  sand,  and 
dotted  with  colonies  of  millions  of  oysters.  Dead 
coral  and  other  products  of  the  sea  are  scattered 
everywhere  on  this  plateau,  and  it  is  a theory  that 
these  surface  interruptions  prevent  overcrowding 
of  the  oysters,  and  consequently  assist  in  the  bi- 
valve’s reaching  the  pearl-producing  stage.  It  is 
claimed  that  a crowded  paar  contributes  to  a 
stunting  of  growth,  bringing  disease  and  prema- 
ture death  to  the  oyster,  and  consequently  no 
pearls  of  account. 

The  estimate  of  the  experts  upon  which  it  was 

57 


East  of  Suez 


decided  to  announce  a fishery  last  year  was  that 
there  were  on  the  Southwest  Cheval  paar  3,500,000 
oysters  which  might  be  gathered,  on  the  Mideast 
Cheval  paar  13,750,000  oysters,  on  the  North  and 
South  Moderagam  25,750,000,  and  on  the  South 
Cheval  40,220,000. 

The  announcement  of  this  total  of  83,000,000  bi- 
valves produced  an  electrical  effect,  and  an  un- 
precedented attendance,  for  it  was  equal  to  an- 
nouncing a lottery  with  that  many  tickets,  and 
who  knows  how  few  prizes ! 

The  student  seeking  to  determine  the  eighth 
wonder  of  the  world  should  not  overlook  the  city 
of  Marichchikkaddi.  Stories  of  towns  rising  over- 
night wherever  gold  is  found,  or  diamonds  discov- 
ered, or  oil  struck,  have  become  common  to  the 
point  of  triteness.  Tales  of  the  uprising  of  Klon- 
dike and  South  African  cities,  once  amazing,  fade 
to  paltriness  in  the  opinion  of  one  who  has  seen 
the  teeming  city  of  Marichchikkaddi.  In  a sense 
it  is  a capital,  yet  it  is  found  in  no  geography ; no 
railway  connects  it  with  the  world,  yet  a dozen 
languages  are  spoken  in  its  streets.  Marichchik- 
kaddi’s  population  numbers  no  young  children, 
no  persons  too  aged  to  toil,  and  the  four  or  five 
hundred  women  sojourners  merit  the  right  of  be- 
ing present  through  serving  as  water-carriers  to 
camp  and  fishing  fleet. 

This  place  with  double-mouthful  name,  almost 
defying  pronunciation,  is  the  pearl  metropolis  of 
the  universe.  Probably  there  is  not  a stocked 
jewel-case  that  does  not  contain  gems  that  have 

58 


O o 

w 

p* 

0 

g 

P 

g 

O 


IOVERNMENT  STOCKADE 


The  Lure  of  the  Pearl 

been  filtered  through  this  unique  city  by  the  sea. 
For  a dozen  reasons  it  is  a wonderful  town,  and 
the  foremost  of  these  is  that  it  is  the  only  city  of 
size  that  comes  and  goes  like  the  tide’s  ebbing  and 
flowing. 

When  a fishery  is  proclaimed,  Marichchikkaddi 
is  only  a name— a sand-drifted  waste  lying  be- 
tween the  jungle  of  the  hinterland  and  the  ocean. 
Yet  nine  months  before  forty  thousand  people 
dwelt  here  under  shelter  of  roofs,  and  here  the 
struggle  for  gain  had  been  prosecuted  with  an 
earnestness  that  would  have  borne  golden  fruit  in 
any  city  in  the  Western  world.  There,  where  lies 
the  skeleton  of  a jackal  half-buried  in  sand,  an  In- 
dian banker  had  his  habitat  and  office  only  a few 
months  before,  with  a lakh  of  rupees  stacked  in  a 
conspicuous  place  as  glittering  earnest  of  his 
ability  to  pay  well  for  anything  remarkable  in  the 
way  of  a pearl.  And  beyond,  where  occurs  the  rift 
in  the  sand,  stood  the  shanty  in  which  venturesome 
divers  whiled  away  time  and  money  in  trying  to 
pitch  rings  upon  the  ends  of  walking-sticks,  as  do 
farmers’  boys  at  New  England  county  fairs. 

With  the  license  permitting  the  calling  of  a pile 
of  buildings  formed  of  stucco  a “White  City,” 
this  metropolis  might  with  propriety  be  named 
the  “City  of  Brown,”  or,  better,  the  “Cadjan 
City.”  For  inaccessibility,  it  is  in  a class  by  itself. 

Colombo  is  facetiously  spoken  of  by  English- 
men as  the  Clapham  Junction  of  the  East,  for  the 
reason  that  one  can  there  change  to  a steamer  car- 
rying him  virtually  to  any  place  on  the  globe. 

61 


East  of  Suez 


But  it  is  simpler  for  a white  man  to  get  to  Mel- 
bourne, or  Penang,  or  New  York,  from  Colombo, 
than  to  obtain  passage  to  Marichchikkaddi,  only  a 
hundred  and  fifteen  miles  up  the  coast.  If  he  can 
wait  long  enough,  passage  may  be  found,  of 
course;  but  otherwise  all  the  official  and  editorial 
persuasion  of  Colombo— and  the  subsidized  influ- 
ence of  the  head  porter  of  the  “G.  0.  H.,”  availeth 
nothing.  Now  and  then  he  may  hear  of  a specula- 
tive Parsee’s  dhow  that  may  be  going  to  Manar 
for  a cargo  of  shell-cased  lottery  tickets,  or  of  a 
native-owned  launch  that  will  carry  a limited 
number  of  passengers  at  an  unlimited  fare.  A 
fast-sailing  outrigger  canoe  may  always  be  char- 
tered. Another  opportunity  is  to  travel  two  days 
by  post-cart  to  a village  one  never  heard  of,  trans- 
ferring there  to  a bullock  hackery  that  may  take 
him  through  jungle  roads  to  the  cadjan  metropo- 
lis-provided he  is  able  to  give  instructions  in 
Tamil,  or  a college-bred  coolie  can  be  found  who 
knows  English.  Still  another  way  is  to  take  the 
semi-weekly  steamer  from  Colombo  to  Tuticoriu, 
in  southern  India,  then  zigzag  about  the  continent 
of  Asia  until  he  makes  Paumben.  Then  it  is  a 
matter  of  only  a few  days  when  there  will  be  a 
boat  crossing  to  the  pearl-camp.  This  is  the 
surest  way  of  getting  to  Marichchikkaddi;  but  it 
is  like  making  the  journey  from  New  York  to  Bos- 
ton by  way  of  Bermuda. 

Ceylon’s  substitute  for  virtually  everything 
elsewhere  used  in  the  construction  of  buildings  is 
the  cadjan:  it  is  at  once  board,  clapboard,  shingle, 

62 


The  Lure  of  the  Pearl 


and  lath.  Cadjans  are  plaited  from  the  leaf  of 
the  cocoanut-  or  date-palm,  and  are  usually  five  or 
six  feet  long  and  about  ten  inches  wide ; the  center 
rib  of  the  leaf  imparts  reasonable  rigidity  and 
strength.  Half  the  shelters  for  man  and  beast 
throughout  the  island  are  formed  of  cadjans,  cost- 
ing nothing  but  the  making,  and  giving  protection 
from  the  sun  and  a fair  amount  of  security  from 
the  elements.  The  frame  of  a house  is  made  of 
stakes  planted  in  the  ground,  with  rafters  and 
beams  resting  in  crotches  conveniently  left  by  the 
wood-cutter.  This  slender  frame  is  covered  with 
cadjans,  arranged  systematically,  and  sewn  to- 
gether with  cocoanut-leaf  strands  or  tender  rat- 
tans. Not  a nail  is  used,  and  cad j an  flaps  that 
may  be  raised  or  lowered  from  within  the  building 
take  the  place  of  glazed  windows.  A dwelling  of 
this  character,  carpeted  with  palm-mats,  and 
flanked  with  verandas,  brings  a flowing  measure 
of  comfort  to  the  dweller  in  the  tropics;  but  the 
gales  of  the  annual  southwest  monsoon  play  havoc 
with  cad  j an  roofs  and  walls. 

It  being  known  that  a fishery  will  bring  together 
at  least  forty  thousand  souls,  a small  army  of 
coolies  hastens  to  Marichchikkaddi  a few  weeks 
prior  to  the  announced  date  for  opening  the  fish- 
ery, to  prepare  the  buildings  necessary  to  house 
all  and  sundry,  and  to  erect  bungalows  for  the 
British  functionaries  having  the  enterprise  in 
charge.  Public  buildings  almost  pretentious  in 
size  and  design  rise  from  the  earth  in  a few  days, 
including  a residence  for  the  governor  of  Ceylon, 

63 


East  of  Suez 


who  is  expected  to  grace  the  fishery  by  a visit ; one 
for  the  government  agent  of  the  province  in  which 
the  interesting  industry  is  carried  on ; and  another 
for  the  delegate  of  the  Colonial  Office.  There  rise, 
mushroom-like,  as  well,  a court-house,  treasury, 
hospital,  prison,  telegraph-office  and  post-office, 
and  a fair  example  of  that  blessing  of  the  East 
known  as  a rest-house,  each  reflecting  surpris- 
ing good  taste,  and  being  adequate  to  its  pur- 
pose, and  presumably  completed  at  a cost  well 
within  the  appropriation.  Jerry-builders  and 
grafters  have  yet  to  be  discovered  in  Ceylon. 

Marichchikkaddi  parades  structures  dedicated 
neither  to  religion  nor  dissipation.  But  the  ba- 
zaar-like  alleys  branching  from  the  thoroughfares 
of  the  Cadjan  City  purvey  many  things  not  obtru- 
sively obvious  to  the  British  official.  Whatever 
his  faith,  the  disciple  of  the  pearl  may  solitarily 
prostrate  himself  beneath  a convenient  palm-tree, 
with  face  turned  toward  Mecca,  or  on  the  sea-front 
indulge  the  devotions  stamping  him  a Hindu  of 
merit. 

In  an  administrative  sense  the  important  build- 
ing is  the  “Kachcherie”— mayor’s  office  and  su- 
perintendent’s headquarters  in  one;  but  the  struc- 
ture of  material  interest  is  the  “kottu,”  wherein 
every  sackful  of  oysters  taken  from  the  boats  is 
counted  and  apportioned  between  the  government 
and  the  divers.  It  is  a parallelogram  enclosure  of 
two  or  three  acres  in  area,  fenced  with  bamboo 
palings,  and  roofed  here  and  there  to  protect  the 
coolies  from  the  sun.  For  convenience,  one  end 

64 


The  Lure  of  the  Pearl 


is  as  near  the  sea  as  prudence  will  admit ; and  the 
other,  the  official  end,  where  accountants  and 
armed  guards  are  in  command,  is  not  far  from  the 
governmental  offices.  A system  perfected  by  years 
of  experience  makes  thieving  within  the  kottu  vir- 
tually impossible,  and  the  clerks  who  record  the 
count  of  oysters,  and  issue  them  upon  official  or- 
der, might  safely  conduct  a bankers’  clearing- 
house. On  occasions  they  handle  without  error 
more  than  three  million  oysters  in  a day. 

A quarter  of  a mile  from  the  official  section  of 
the  city  is  the  great  human  warren  and  business 
region,  where  black  men  and  brown— Hindus,  Mo- 
hammedans, Buddhists,  and  the  East’s  flotsam  of 
religions— dwell  and  traffic  in  peaceful  commu- 
nion. A broad  thoroughfare,  starting  from  the  . 
edge  of  the  plateau  overlooking  the  sea  and  ex- 
tending inland  until  the  settlement  yields  to  the 
open  country,  is  the  “Main  street”;  and  here,  for 
ten  or  twelve  weeks,  is  one  of  Asia’s  busiest  marts. 
This  part  of  Marichchikkaddi  is  planned  with 
careful  regard  for  sanitary  needs  and  hygiene. 
Streets  cross  at  right  angles,  and  at  every  corner 
stands  a lamp-post  rudely  made  from  jungle  wood, 
from  which  suspends  a lantern  ingeniously  fash- 
ioned from  an  American  petroleum  tin.  Sites  on 
the  principal  streets  are  leased  for  the  period  of 
the  fishery  to  persons  proving  their  purposes  to 
be  legitimate.  For  a good  corner  lot  perhaps 
twenty  feet  square  the  government  receives  as 
much  as  a thousand  rupees ; and  a few  hours  after 
the  lease  is  signed  up  goes  a cadjan  structure— 


East  of  Suez 


and  a day  later  pearls  worth  a king’s  ransom  may 
there  be  dealt  in  with  an  absence  of  concern  as- 
tounding to  a visitor. 

Can  these  Easterners,  squatting  on  mats  like 
fakirs  in  open-front  stalls,  judge  the  merits  of  a 
pearl?  Yes,  decidedly.  In  the  twinkling  of  an  eye 
one  of  them  estimates  the  worth  of  a gem  with  a 
precision  that  would  take  a Bond  Street  dealer 
hours  to  determine.  The  Indian  or  Cingalese  cap- 
italist who  goes  with  his  cash  to  Marichchikkaddi 
to  buy  pearls  is  not  given  to  taking  chances ; usu- 
ally he  has  learned  by  long  experience  every 
“point”  that  a pearl  can  possess,  knows  whether 
it  be  precisely  spherical,  has  a good  “skin,”  and 
a luster  appealing  to  connoisseurs.  A metal  col- 
ander or  simple  scale  enables  him  to  know  to  the 
fraction  of  a grain  the  weight  of  a pearl,  and  ex- 
perience and  the  trader’s  instinct  tell  him  every- 
thing further  that  may  possibly  be  known  of  a 
gem.  It  would  be  as  profitless  to  assume  to  in- 
struct an  Egyptian  desert  sheikh  upon  the  merits 
of  a horse  as  to  try  to  contribute  information  to 
the  pearl-dealer  of  the  East. 

The  calm  period  of  the  northeast  monsoon  is 
gentleness  itself  by  the  middle  of  February,  and 
the  Gulf  of  Manar  is  seldom  more  than  rippled  by 
its  zephyrs.  The  fishery  begins  then.  For  weeks 
the  divers  have  been  arriving  by  craft  of  every 
conceivable  type  and  rig.  They  are  the  aristo- 
crats of  the  camp,  and  as  they  roam  bazaars  and 
streets  or  promenade  the  sea-front  they  are  ad- 
mired by  coolies  and  peons  as  bull-fighters  would 
be  in  Spain. 


66 


THE  LATE  RANA  OF  DHOLPUR  IN  HIS  PEARL  REGALIA 

This  Indian  prince  is  said  to  have  owned  pearls  valued  at  seven  and  a half  millions  of  dollars, 
the  accumulation,  perhaps,  of  his  ancestors  during  several  centuries 


The  Lure  of  the  Pearl 


Sturdy  fellows  they  are,  lithe  of  limb  and  broad 
of  chest.  Each  brings  a tangle  of  pots  and  kettles, 
bags  and  bales,  but  wears  nothing  throughout  the 
fishery  save  a loin-cloth  and  now  and  then  a tur- 
ban denoting  nationality  or  caste.  There  were 
forty-five  hundred  of  them  in  1905,  and  those 
from  the  Madras  Presidency  were  the  backbone 
of  the  enterprise.  Nearly  half  the  divers  were 
registered  from  Kilakari,  and  hundreds  came  from 
the  tip  end  of  India.  The  men  from  Tuticorin 
were  of  the  Parawa  caste,  and  those  hailing  from 
Paumben  were  Moormen.  The  only  Ceylon  city 
contributing  divers  was  Jaffna,  whose  men  were 
of  the  fisher  caste,  said  to  be  descendants  of  Arabs 
who  settled  sixty  years  ago  at  Jaffna.  The  divers 
coming  the  greatest  distance  were  the  negroes  and 
Arabs  from  Aden  and  the  Persian  Gulf,  most  of 
whom  landed  at  Colombo  from  trading  steamers, 
and  made  their  way  by  small  boat  or  bullock  hack- 
ery to  the  Cadjan  City.  These  fellows  have  few 
equals  as  divers,  but  the  administrative  officers  of 
the  camp  always  fear  that  they  will  come  into  con- 
flict with  the  police  or  launch  a war  in  the  name  of 
Mohammed  against  the  Hindus  or  Cingalese. 
Consequently,  only  a limited  number  are  allowed 
to  take  part  in  the  fishery. 

An  amusing  incident  was  furnished  last  season 
by  the  arrival  of  a diver  of  some  renown  in  India, 
who  had  participated  profitably  in  several  fish- 
eries. Accompanied  by  his  “manduck,”  the  fel- 
low had  crossed  from  Paumben  as  a deck  passen- 
ger on  a British  India  steamer.  When  the  vessel 
was  anchored,  the  diver  summoned  a rowboat  to 


East  of  Suez 


take  himself  and  traps  ashore.  Wearing  nothing 
but  loin-cloth  and  turban,  the  man  descended  the 
side-steps  an  example  of  physical  perfection, 
and  so  thoroughly  smeared  with  cocoanut  butter 
that  he  shone  like  a stove-polish  advertisement 
The  boat  grounding  on  the  shelving  bottom  a hun- 
dred feet  from  shore,  this  precious  Indian,  who 
was  to  pass  a good  share  of  the  ensuing  ten  weeks 
in  the  water,  even  at  the  bottom  of  the  sea,  deliber- 
ately seated  himself  astride  the  shoulders  of  his 
manduck,  and  was  borne  to  dry  land  with  the  care 
of  one  whose  religion  might  forbid  contact  with 
water.  He  carried  beneath  one  arm  throughout 
the  trip  from  the  small  boat  a gingham  umbrella, 
and  under  the  other  an  Indian  railway  guide. 

There  are  neither  wharves  nor  landing-stages 
at  Marichchikkaddi.  Even  His  Excellency  the 
Governor  must  lay  aside  his  dignity  in  going 
from  his  boat  to  the  shore.  The  horde  of  people 
working  about  the  pearling  fleet,  amphibious  by 
nature,  have  little  need  for  those  accommodations 
and  necessities  which  the  commercial  world  call 
“landing  facilities.” 

The  world  over,  gambling  and  speculation  are 
joined  in  many  ways  to  superstition  ; and  the  East- 
era  diver  is  superstitious  to  the  hour  of  his  death. 
At  Marichchikkaddi  he  devotedly  resorts  to  the 
mystic  ceremony  of  the  shark-charmer,  whose  ex- 
orcism for  generations  has  been  an  indispensable 
preliminary  to  the  opening  of  a fishery.  The 
shark-charmer’s  power  is  believed  to  be  heredi- 
tary. If  one  of  them  can  be  enlisted  on  a diver’s 

70 


The  Lure  of  the  Pearl 


boat,  success  is  assured  to  all  connected  with  the 
craft.  The  common  form  of  fortune-tempting 
nowadays  is  for  a diver  to  break  a cocoanut  on  his 
sinking-weight  just  before  embarking.  If  it  be  a 
clean  and  perfect  break,  success  is  assured;  if  ir- 
regular and  jagged,  only  ordinary  luck  may  be  an- 
ticipated; and  if  the  shell  be  broken  in  without 
separating  into  halves,  it  spells  disaster,  and  the 
alarmed  fisher  probably  refuses  to  go  with  the 
boat. 

Last  year ’s  fleet  was  the  largest  ever  participa- 
ting in  a Ceylon  fishery,  three  hundred  and  twenty 
boats  being  enrolled.  The  largest  boats  came  from 
Tuticorin,  and  carried  thirty-four  divers  each. 
The  smallest  boat  had  a complement  of  seven 
divers.  Each  diver  was  faithfully  attended  by  a 
manduck,  who  ran  his  tackle  and  watched  over  his 
interests  with  jealous  care  both  in  and  out  of  the 
water.  Besides  the  manducks,  every  boat  had 
numerous  sailors,  food-  and  water-servers,  and  a 
riffraff  of  hangers-on.  It  was  estimated  that  di- 
vers and  manducks  aggregated  nine  thousand 
souls.  A system  of  apportionment  gives  every 
man  in  a boat  an  interest  in  the  take,  the  divers 
generally  retaining  two  thirds  of  the  bivalves 
granted  them  by  the  government  rule  controlling 
the  fishery.  The  Kilakari  divers  observe  a time- 
honored  custom  of  giving  to  their  home  mosque 
the  proceeds  of  one  plunge  each  day. 

Nature  obligingly  assists  the  workers  on  the 
banks  by  supplying  a gentle  off-shore  breeze  at 
daybreak,  which  sends  the  fleet  to  the  fishing 

71 


East  of  Suez 


ground,  six  or  eight  miles  from  the  shore.  By  two 
o’clock  in  the  afternoon  a gun  from  a government 
vessel  directs  the  boats  to  set  sail  for  the  return. 
By  this  hour  the  breeze  is  accommodatingly  from 
the  sea,  and  the  fleet  runs  home  with  flowing 
sheets.  Navigation,  it  will  be  seen,  plays  a very 
subordinate  part  in  Marichchikkaddi’s  marine  en- 
terprise. 

With  the  exception  of  the  divers  from  the  Mala- 
bar coast,  who  plunge  head  foremost  from  a 
spring-board,  the  men  go  into  the  water  in  an  up- 
right position,  and  are  hurried  in  their  journey  to 
the  bottom  by  a stone  weighing  from  forty  to  fifty 
pounds.  Each  diver’s  attendant  has  charge  of  two 
ropes  slung  over  a railing  above  the  side  of  the 
boat : one  suspends  the  diving-stone,  and  the  other 
a wide-mouthed  basket  of  network.  The  nude 
diver,  already  in  the  sea,  places  the  basket  on  the 
stone  and  inserts  one  foot  in  a loop  attached  to  the 
stone.  He  draws  a long  breath,  closes  his  nostrils 
with  the  fingers  of  one  hand,  raises  his  body  as 
high  as  possible  above  water,  to  give  force  to 
his  descent,  and,  loosening  the  rope  supporting  the 
weight,  is  carried  quickly  to  the  bottom.  An  Arab 
diver  closes  the  nostrils  with  a tortoise-shell  clip, 
and  occasionally  a diver  is  seen  whose  ears  are 
stopped  with  oil-saturated  cotton.  The  manduck 
hoists  the  weight  from  the  bottom  and  adjusts  it 
for  the  next  descent.  Meanwhile,  the  diver,  work- 
ing face  downward,  is  filling  the  basket  with  oys- 
ters with  speed.  When  the  basket  is  filled  or 
breath  exhausted,  the  diver  signals,  and  is  drawn 

72 


5f2TPT£U£: 

G IVEIM  FOR-» 


INDIAN  PEARL  MERCHANTS  READY  FOR  BUSINESS 


The  Lure  of  the  Pearl 


up  as  rapidly  as  possible  by  the  rope  attached  to 
the  basket,  and  a specially  agile  diver  facilitates 
the  ascent  by  climbing  hand  over  hand  on  the  line 
When  a man  has  been  in  the  water  half  an  hour, 
and  made  perhaps  seven  or  eight  descents,  he 
clambers  aboard  the  boat  for  a rest  and  a sunbath, 
and  in  a few  minutes  is  taking  part  in  the  inter- 
minable chatter  of  the  Orient. 

A diver  coming  up  with  basket  filled  wears  a 
face  of  benign  contentment ; but  when  the  oysters 
are  few  and  far  between,  as  they  are  oftentimes, 
and  the  man  has  prolonged  his  stay  below  to  the 
limit  of  his  air  supply,  his  head  is  out  of  water  not 
many  seconds  before  he  is  volubly  denouncing  the 
official  control  forcing  him  to  work  on  a “paar” 
where  little  but  sand  exists,  and  his  confreres  on 
the  boat  hurl  savage  invective  at  any  government 
functionary  within  earshot. 

The  powerful  Eastern  sun  illumines  the  bottom 
sufficiently  for  a diver  to  plan  his  operations  be- 
fore going  down,  and  nine  days  out  of  ten  the  over- 
head sun  renders  the  sea  sufficiently  transparent 
to  guide  a boat’s  crew  to  promising  anchorages. 
Pearling  economists  insist  that  dredging  by  ma- 
chinery or  the  use  of  diving-suits  can  never 
compete  with  the  simple  and  inexpensive  method 
in  vogue  on  the  Manar  banks.  At  Marichchikkaddi 
one  hears  frequent  discussion  of  the  time  a diver 
may  stay  under  water,  and  many  improbable  ac- 
counts of  what  has  been  done  are  told  a visitor. 
An  average  Tamil  or  Moorman  stays  down  not 
longer  than  forty-five  seconds,  while  the  broad- 

75 


East  of  Suez 


chested  Arab  thinks  nothing  of  being  under  water 
from  sixty  to  eighty  seconds. 

Depth  has  much  to  do  with  the  time,  and  it  is  ad- 
mitted that  divers  do  not  suffer  unduly  from  the 
trying  nature  of  their  calling  except  when  forced 
to  work  in  unusually  deep  water.  Seven  or  eight 
fathoms— about  the  average  on  the  Ceylon  banks 
—produces  no  injurious  effect,  but  nine  fathoms 
tell  on  all  but  men  of  sturdy  build.  Occasionally 
a declivity  perhaps  ten  fathoms  below  the  surface 
has  to  be  fished,  and  this  demands  the  service  of 
picked  men,  divers  possessing  the  highest  vitality. 
Several  divers  collapse  every  season  through  toil- 
ing at  unusual  depths,  and  two  or  three  pay  the 
penalty  of  death.  Most  divers,  however,  live  to  as 
full  a span  as  men  pursuing  other  humble  callings. 

When  a fishery  is  at  its  height,  the  scene  on  the 
banks  is  one  of  extreme  animation,  and  a picture 
full  of  strangeness  to  New  World  eyes.  Each 
craft  is  a floating  hive  of  competitive  noise  and 
activity,  and  the  center  of  a cordon  of  disappear- 
ing and  reappearing  seal-like  heads,  with  baskets 
splashing  in  the  water  or  being  hauled  by  excited 
hands.  In  the  distance  floats  the  majestic  barque 
Rengasamy  Puravey,  an  old-timer,  with  stately 
spars,  a quarter-deck,  and  painted  port-holes  that 
might  cause  a landsman  to  believe  her  a war-ship. 
For  half  the  year  the  barque  is  the  home  of  the 
government’s  marine  biologist,  and  his  office  and 
laboratory,  wherein  scientific  investigation  and  ex- 
perimentation are  in  constant  progress,  are  in 
houses  built  on  the  quarter-deck.  Small  steamers, 

76 


The  Lure  of  the  Pearl 


having  an  official  cut,  move  here  and  there  among 
the  fishing  boats,  doing  patrol  duty  and  carrying 
instructions  when  necessary  from  the  Rengasamy 
Paravey. 

“Would  you  like  to  go  down  in  a diving-costume 
from  a boat  alongside  the  barque?”  asks  the  biol- 
ogist; “it ’s  perfectly  safe,  and  I have  a dress  that 
will  fit  you.  Frequently  I go  to  the  bottom  to 
study  the  curious  growths  there,  and  last  season 
the  colonial  secretary  did  the  thing  two  or  three 
times.  ’ ’ 

With  a readiness  of  speech  rivaling  gunfire  in 
promptness  I nipped  in  the  bud  the  preparations 
for  carrying  out  the  proffered  courtesy,  explain- 
ing that  I was  glad  to  accept  a vicarious  descrip- 
tion of  things  at  the  ocean’s  bottom. 

The  dingy  fleet  blossoms  into  a cloud  of  canvas, 
with  every  boat  headed  for  Marichchikkaddi,  the 
instant  the  “cease  work”  gun  is  fired.  The  scene 
suggests  a regatta  on  a gigantic  scale,  and  from  a 
distance  the  leaning  lug  and  lateen  sails  of  the 
East  give  the  idea  of  craft  traveling  at  terrific 
speed.  It  is  a regatta,  a free-for-all,  devil-take- 
the-hindmost  affair.  The  prizes  are  choice  berths 
on  the  beach  as  near  as  possible  to  the  kottu,  and 
the  coolies  who  must  carry  the  sacks  of  oysters  see 
to  it  that  the  ‘ ‘ tindal  ’ ’ and  his  sailors  make  no  re- 
tarding error. 

The  camp  had  been  peaceful  and  somnolent 
while  the  boats  were  out ; but  the  word  that  the 
fleet  was  coming  in  had  roused  every  laborer, 
every  petty  dealer,  speculator,  and  harpy  to  ner- 

77 


East  of  Suez 

vous  activity.  Everybody  goes  to  the  sea-front 
to  witness  the  beaching  of  the  boats  and  to  watch 
the  unloading.  An  hour  probably  elapses  between 
the  coming  of  the  leader  of  the  fleet  and  the  arri- 
val of  the  slowest  boat.  During  this  period  the  im- 
portant functionary  is  the  beach-master,  who 
shouts  his  commands  to  boats  seeking  to  crowd 
into  positions  not  rightly  theirs.  When  a boat  is 
securely  drawn  upon  the  strand,  there  is  no  waste 
of  time  in  getting  the  cargo  started  for  the 
government  storehouse.  Muscular  porters,  glis- 
tening in  their  perspiring  nudeness,  go  in 
single  file  between  boat  and  kottu  like  ants 
executing  a transportation  feat.  In  a very 
few  minutes  the  oysters  are  being  counted 
by  nimble-handed  coolies.  Important  gam- 
blers in  oysters,  men  with  sharp  eyes  and  spec- 
ulative instincts,  have  only  to  note  the  number  of 
sacks  delivered  from  one  or  two  boats— and  secure 
a hint  from  an  obliging  diver  as  to  whether  the  bi- 
valves are  “thin”  or  “thick”— to  arrive  at  a safe 
hypothesis  of  what  the  day’s  take  has  been,  and 
also  whether  the  oysters  promise  to  be  fairly 
pearliferous.  The  opinions  of  two  or  three  of 
these  experts  make  a basis  for  starting  the  prices 
at  the  auction  in  the  evening,  and  these  “sharps” 
are  seldom  wrong  in  their  estimate  of  what  would 
be  a safe  offer  for  a thousand  chances  in  the  great 
lottery  of  Asia. 

The  count  in  the  kottu  is  soon  completed,  and 
each  boat’s  catch  is  divided  into  three  piles,  when 
an  official  selects  two  for  the  government,  and  the 

78 


The  Lure  of  the  Pearl 


third  is  so  expeditiously  removed  that  a quarter 
of  an  hour  later  the  share  of  the  divers  is  being 
huckstered  throughout  the  camp  to  small  spec- 
ulators. 

Upon  each  craft  throughout  the  day  has  been  a 
native  watchman  of  supposed  honesty,  in  the  gov- 
ernment’s employ,  whose  duty  has  been  to  see  that 
no  oysters  were  surreptitiously  opened  on  the 
banks  or  during  the  run  home.  Suspicion  of  the 
extraction  of  pearls  on  the  part  of  any  member  of 
the  crew  leads  to  the  police  being  informed,  and  an 
arrest  follows.  A favorite  way  of  hiding  pearls 
is  to  tie  the  gems  in  a rag  attached  to  the  anchor 
that  is  thrown  overboard  when  the  boat  lands. 
Another  is  to  fasten  a packet  to  a piece  of  rigging 
adroitly  run  to  the  masthead,  there  to  remain  un- 
til opportunity  permits  the  dishonest  schemer  to 
remove  it  unobserved. 

On  their  way  to  their  sleeping  quarters  it  is  in- 
teresting to  observe  divers  stopping  at  boutiques 
and  tea  saloons  for  refreshments,  paying  their 
score  with  oysters,  extremely  acceptable  to  the 
shopkeeper  itching  to  test  his  luck.  In  a small 
way,  oysters  pass  current  in  the  Cadjan  City  as 
the  equivalent  of  coins.  Probably  the  variations 
in  value  lead  to  fluctuations  in  exchange,  but  these 
are  so  keenly  understood  that  the  quotations  are 
apparently  adjusted  automatically,  like  exchange 
between  nations. 

The  sale  is  held  in  the  building  where  the  camp 
magistrate  all  the  afternoon  has  been  dispensing 
justice  in  breaches  of  Marichchikkaddi’s  morals— 

79 


East  of  Suez 


simple  assaults,  thieving,  and  other  petty  misde- 
meanors usual  to  police  courts.  Punctually  at 
sunset  the  auction  begins.  If  the  universe  offers 
a stranger  gathering  for  which  commerce  is  re- 
sponsible, it  would  be  difficult  to  give  it  location. 
The  gentle  government  agent  sits  on  the  platform, 
and  in  front  of  the  rostrum  is  the  splendidly  ap- 
pareled chief  mudiliyar,  to  interpret  between  auc- 
tioneer and  buyers.  The  bidders-to-be  number 
half  a hundred,  and  their  eager  faces  are  directed 
toward  the  august  official  of  the  government,  each 
probably  praying  secretly  to  his  god  that  undue 
competition  be  not  inspired  to  the  extent  of  exclud- 
ing bargains.  In  the  throng  are  chetties,  Moor 
merchants,  and  local  hawkers,  hoping  to  get  a few 
thousand  bivalves  at  a price  assuring  a profit  when 
peddled  through  the  coastwise  villages. 

“Do  these  men  represent  actual  capital?”  you 
ask  the  agent.  “They  do,  indeed,”  is  the  reply, 
“and  collectively  they  are  backed  by  cash  in  hand 
and  satisfactory  credits  in  Ceylon  banks  of  at  least 
a hundred’lakhs  of  rupees.”  Forced  as  you  are  to 
accept  the  statement,  you  inwardly  confess  that 
they  don’t  look  it,  for  $3,200,000  is  a goodly  credit 
anywhere. 

In  the  fading  light  of  day  the  agent  announces 
that  approximately  two  million  oysters  are  to  be 
sold,  and  he  invites  offers  for  them  by  the  thou- 
sand—the  highest  bidder  to  take  as  many  as  he 
chooses,  the  quotation  to  be  effective  and  apply  to 
others  until  it  is  raised  by  some  one  fearing  there 
will  not  be  oysters  enough  to  satisfy  the  demands 

80 


The  Lure  of  the  Pearl 


of  everybody.  It  is  the  principle  of  supply  and 
demand  reduced  to  simplicity.  The  competition 
to  fix  the  price  of  the  first  lot  consumes  perhaps  a 
minute.  The  initial  bid  was  thirty  rupees ; this 
was  elevated  to  thirty-two,  and  so  on  until  thirty- 
six  was  the  maximum  that  could  be  induced  from 
the  motley  assemblage.  With  his  pencil  the  agent 
taps  the  table,  and  the  mudiliyar  says  something 
in  Hindustani  meaning  “sold.”  The  buyer  was 
an  Arab  from  Bombay,  operating  for  a syndicate 
of  rich  Indians  taking  a flier  in  lottery  tickets.  In 
a manner  almost  lordly  he  announces  that  he  will 
take  four  hundred  thousand  oysters.  Then  a sale 
of  two  thousand  follows  at  an  advanced  price  to 
a nondescript  said  to  have  come  all  the  way  from 
Mecca;  a towering  Sikh  from  the  Punjab  secures 
twenty  thousand  at  a reduced  rate,  and  so  on.  In 
ten  or  twelve  minutes  the  day ’s  product  is  disposed 
of  to  greedy  buyers  for  the  sum  of  62,134  good 
and  lawful  rupees.  A clerk  records  names  of 
buyers  with  expedition,  glancing  now  and  then  at 
a document  proving  their  credit,  and  in  a few  min- 
utes issues  the  requisitions  upon  the  kottu  for  the 
actual  oysters  that  will  be  honored  in  the  early 
morning. 

The  primitive  process  by  which  the  pearls  are 
extracted  from  the  oysters  is  tedious,  offensive  to 
the  senses,  and  of  a character  much  too  disagree- 
able to  be  associated  with  the  jewel  symbolizing 
purity.  A few  million  oysters  are  shipped  to 
southern  India,  and  some  go  to  Jaffna  and  Co- 
lombo; but  the  preponderating  bulk  is  dealt  with 

8l 


East  of  Suez 


in  the  private  kottus  in  the  outskirts  of  the  camp 
belonging  to  the  men  who  crowd  the  auction  room. 
To  open  fresh  from  the  sea  and  scrutinize  every 
part  of  the  oyster  would  be  too  slow  a method  to 
be  applied  to  the  business  of  pearl-getting.  The 
native  who  obtains  a few  dozen  seeks  shelter  un- 
der the  first  mustard-tree,  and  with  dull-edged 
knife,  dissects  each  bivalve  with  a thoroughness 
permitting  nothing  to  escape  his  eye. 

The  burning  sun,  bringing  putrefaction  and  de- 
cay to  the  oyster,  is  the  operator’s  agency  for  se- 
curing what  pearls  his  purchase  may  contain. 
For  a week  or  ten  days  the  oysters  are  stacked 
in  his  private  kottu,  and  the  process  of  disintegra- 
tion is  facilitated  by  swarms  of  flies  and  millions 
of  maggots.  When  the  tropical  sun  can  do  no 
more,  the  contents  of  the  shells— putrid,  filthy, 
and  overpoweringly  odoriferous— are  gathered  in 
troughs  and  other  receptacles  to  be  put  through 
a process  of  cleansing  by  washing  with  water  fre- 
quently drawn  away.  The  residue,  carefully  pre- 
served, is  picked  over  when  dry  by  experts,  work- 
ing under  the  watchfulness  of  owner  or  his  deputy 
—and  in  this  manner  the  pearls  of  my  lady’s 
dainty  necklace  and  the  engagement  ring  are 
wrested  from  nature. 

Sometimes  an  impatient  speculator  is  seen  with 
his  coolies  on  the  beach  carefully  washing  vatfuls 
of  “matter,”  perhaps  employing  a dugout  canoe 
as  a washing  trough.  Wherever  the  work  is  done 
the  stench  is  almost  overpowering,  and  the  odors 
defy  neutralization.  The  wonder  is  that  some 

82 


THE  LATE  MAHARAJAH  OF  PATIALA  IN  HIS  PEARL  REGALIA 


The  L ure  of  the  Pearl 


dread  disease  of  the  Orient  does  not  make  a clean 
sweep  of  the  city’s  population.  The  medical  offi- 
cers claim  that  the  malodorous  fumes  are  not 
dangerous,  and  experience  has  taught  these  offi- 
cials to  locate  the  compounds,  wherein  millions  of 
oysters  are  to  decompose,  in  positions  where  the 
trade  winds  waft  the  smells  seaward  or  inland, 
without  greatly  affecting  the  camp’s  health.  The 
British  official  whose  olfactory  organ  survives  a 
season  at  the  pearl  camp  deserves  from  his  home 
government  at  least  the  honor  of  knighthood. 

Interesting  as  Marichchikkaddi  is  to  the  person 
making  a study  of  the  conduct  of  unusual  indus- 
tries and  the  government  of  Eastern  people,  the 
medical  officer  looms  important  as  the  function- 
ary shouldering  a greater  responsibility  than  any 
other  officer  of  the  camp.  To  draw  forty  thou- 
sand people  from  tropical  lands,  grouping  them 
on  a sand  plain  only  a few  hundred  miles  above 
the  equator,  is  an  undertaking  pregnant  with  dan- 
ger, when  considered  from  the  standpoint  of  hy- 
giene. Strange  to  say,  Marichchikkaddi ’s  health 
is  always  satisfactory;  but  tons  of  disinfectants 
have  to  be  used.  Malarial  fever  is  ever  present, 
but  is  of  a mild  type.  The  outdoor  dispensary 
does  a rushing  business,  but  only  seventy-five 
cases  were  sufficiently  serious  last  season  to  be 
sent  to  hospital,  and  only  ten  of  these  were 
fatal.  The  divers  are  prone  to  pneumonia  and 
pleurisy,  and  these  diseases  carried  off  five.  The 
deaths  out  of  hospital  totaled  twenty-two. 

In  the  hospital  I saw  a man  with  grizzled  beard 

85 


East  of  Suez 


whose  escape  from  death  bordered  upon  the  mar- 
velous. His  head  had  been  jammed  four  days  be- 
fore between  colliding  boats,  cracking  his  skull  to 
the  extent  of  letting  the  brain  protrude.  He  was 
rushed  to  the  hospital  to  die,  but  had  no  intention 
of  passing  to  another  world,  the  doctors  learned. 
Sitting  upright  on  his  cot-bed,  the  poor  fellow 
said  to  me  with  an  earnestness  almost  compelling 
tears:  “Help  me  to  get  out  of  this  place,  please. 
I want  to  be  with  my  boat,  for  there  is  no  bet- 
ter diver  than  I am,  and  I can  earn  a hundred 
rupees  a day  as  easily  as  any  man  in  Marichchik- 
kaddi.” 

As  an  illustration  of  the  white  man’s  suprem- 
acy, in  dealing  with  black  and  brown  peoples, 
Marichchikkaddi  probably  has  no  equal.  Here,  in 
an  isolated  spot  on  the  coast  of  Ceylon,  hours 
from  anywhere  by  sea,  and  shut  off  from  the 
large  towns  of  the  island  by  jungle  and  forest 
wherein  elephants,  leopards,  and  other  wild  ani- 
mals roam,  twelve  or  fifteen  Britishers  rule,  with 
an  authority  never  challenged,  more  than  forty 
thousand  adventurous  Asiatics— men  whose  voca- 
tion is  largely  based  on  their  daring,  and  whose 
competing  religions  and  castes  possess  the  germ 
of  fanaticism  that  might  be  roused  to  bloodshed. 
The  white  man’s  control  is  supported  by  the  pres- 
ence of  two  hundred  policemen,  it  is  true,  but 
these  are  natives.  The  keynote  of  this  exposition 
of  a multitude  ruled  by  a handful  of  Europeans 
is  the  absolute  fairness  of  their  control,  of  course. 
Were  justice  non-existent,  it  would  be  inviting 

86 


The  Lure  of  the  Pearl 

disaster  for  the  white  official  to  apprehend  a 
wrong-doer,  place  him  on  trial,  and  personally 
administer  with  lash  or  birch  the  corporal  punish- 
ment to  be  witnessed  any  morning  in  front  of  the 
camp  lockup. 

And  what  might  happen  if  the  divers,  through 
their  ringleaders,  objected  to  surrendering  to  the 
Ceylon  government  the  demanded  “rake-off”  of 
two  thirds  the  oysters  rescued  from  the  sea  by 
their  efforts,  in  the  event  of  these  courageous  fel- 
lows being  assured  that  all  the  law  in  the  world  on 
the  subject  says  that  all  the  sea  and  all  therein 
contained,  beyond  the  distance  of  three  nautical 
miles  from  shore,  belongs  to  the  universe?  But 
the  Manar  diver  knows  naught  of  the  three-mile 
law,  presumably. 

Does  the  fishery  pay?  Tremendously,  so  far 
as  facts  upon  which  to  base  an  answer  are  obtain- 
able. The  government  treasury  is  sometimes 
enormously  expanded  as  a result  of  the  enter- 
prise. In  1905,  the  most  prosperous  of  all  Ma- 
nar fisheries,  the  government  sold  its  fifty  million 
oysters  for  two  and  one  half  million  rupees,  and 
at  least  $600,000  of  this  was  profit.  Years  ago,  it 
is  true,  there  were  several  fisheries  producing  for 
the  treasury  nothing  but  deficits.  Nobody  ever 
knows  what  reward  visits  the  purchasers  of  oys- 
ters, for  it  is  their  habit  to  spread  the  report  of 
non-success  and  disappointment.  But  the  buyers 
and  speculators  come  each  year  in  larger  num- 
bers, with  augmented  credits,  and  they  pay  in 
competition  with  their  kind  a larger  price  for  the 

87 


East  of  Suez 


oysters.  The  conclusion  is,  therefore,  that  they 
find  the  business  profitable. 

Even  rumors  of  luck  and  profit  would  bring 
more  speculators  and  rising  prices  at  the  auction 
sales,  manifestly.  Reports  of  fortunate  strikes  at 
Marichchikkaddi  may  more  frequently  be  heard 
in  India  than  in  Ceylon,  let  it  be  said ; and  it  is  the 
gilded  grandees  of  Hind— princes,  maharajahs 
and  rajahs— rather  than  the  queens  of  Western 
society,  who  become  possessors  of  the  trove  of 
Manar. 

No  Colombo  merchant  or  magnate,  or  man  or 
woman  of  the  official  set,  is  superior  to  tempting 
fortune  by  buying  a few  thousand  oysters  freshly 
landed  from  Marichchikkaddi.  And  the  intermi- 
nable question  of  caste,  banning  many  things  to 
Cingalese  and  Tamil,  inhibits  not  the  right  to 
gamble  upon  the  contents  of  a sackful  of  bivalves. 
If  the  fishery  be  successful,  all  Ceylon  teems  with 
stories  of  lucky  finds,  and  habitations  ranging 
from  the  roadside  hut  to  the  aristocratic  bunga- 
low in  the  Cinnamon  Gardens  are  pointed  to  as 
having  been  gained  by  a productive  deal  in  oys- 
ters. A favorite  tale  is  that  of  the  poor  horse- 
tender,  who,  buying  a few  cents’  worth  of  oysters, 
found  the  record  pearl  of  the  year;  another  is 
of  the  Tickshawman  suspected  of  having  money 
in  the  bank  as  a result  of  a lucky  find  on  the  sea- 
front of  Colombo  of  three  or  four  oysters  dropped 
from  a discharging  boat— in  a shaded  alley  be- 
tween buildings  he  forced  the  bivalves  to  disgorge 
a pearl  worth  hundreds  of  pounds  sterling.  Most 

. 88 


The  Lure  of  the  Pearl 


stories  of  this  character  are  as  untrue  as  the  re- 
ports of  soubrettes  and  telephone  boys  winning 
fortunes  in  Wall  Street. 

Did  I try  my  luck?  Of  course  I did.  Who 
could  resist  the  temptation?  I purchased  two 
great  sackfuls  of  oysters,  a thousand  in  number, 
which  were  brought  off  to  the  government  tug 
Active  by  salaaming  peons  from  the  government 
agent’s  office.  At  five  o’clock  the  tug  was  ready 
to  start  Colomboward  the  instant  the  “des- 
patches” I was  to  deliver  came  on  board.  At  last 
the  precious  package,  with  a parade  of  red  tape 
and  impressive  wax  seals,  was  handed  over  the 
side.  It  may  have  contained  something  as  price- 
less as  a last  year’s  directory;  I never  knew.  It 
was  my  deep-seated  suspicion,  however,  that  the 
packet  was  somebody’s  excuse  for  letting  the  pub- 
lic treasury  expend  a few  hundred  rupees  in  car- 
rying one  in  private  life  back  to  Colombo  to  catch 
his  steamer  for  China  the  next  evening. 

Confident  was  I that  the  bags  on  the  stern 
grating  that  had  been  freshly  soused  with  sea- 
water as  the  Active  steamed  away  from  Marich- 
cliikkaddi  contained  a wealth  of  pearls.  In  the 
cool  of  the  early  morning  I would  subsidize  the 
eight  native  sailors,  getting  them  to  open  the 
shelled  treasures,  while  I garnered  the  pearls. 
With  this  thought  uppermost,  I turned  in  on  a 
cushionless  bench  to  snatch  a few  hours’  sleep. 
But  slumber  was  out  of  the  question;  my  brain 
was  planning  what  might  be  done  with  the  pearls 
I was  soon  to  possess.  Yes,  there  surely  would  be 


East  of  Suez 


plenty  for  a pearl-studded  tiara  for  the  loved  one 
awaiting  me;  and  any  superfluity  might  be  made 
into  ropes  and  collars  for  admiring  relatives  at 
home.  Cousin  Jessie  had  always  coveted  a neck- 
lace of  pearls  with  a diamond  clasp.  The  dainty 
baubles  were  in  those  sacks ; there  was  no  question 
about  that.  Yes,  my  luck  at  pearl-getting  would 
compensate  for  missing  Sir  Thomas  Lipton’s  din- 
ner in  Colombo.  Sleep  always  comes  in  time,  and 
at  last  I was  dreaming  of  the  cargo  of  priceless 
gems  with  me  on  the  boat. 

How  extremely  uncomfortable  the  bench  was! 
What  was  that?  I was  not  asleep,  but  very  wide- 
awake—and  such  pains!  In  an  instant  I was  roll- 
ing on  the  deck  and  shrieking  from  the  terrible- 
ness of  my  suffering.  Could  it  be  cholera,  the 
plague,  or  simply  appendicitis  with  which  I was 
stricken?  The  sailors  held  me  down,  but  not  a 
soul  on  board  knew  a word  of  English.  I was  pos- 
itive that  my  end  had  come,  and  the  thought  of  ex- 
piring away  from  friends  and  with  a pocketful  of 
prepaid  around-the-world  tickets  was  not  agree- 
able. In  an  hour  the  pain  was  excruciating,  and 
it  continued  for  ten  long  hours  with  varying  se- 
verity. Morning  came,  and  the  Indian  skipper  was 
plying  his  furnace  with  lubricating  oil  and  turpen- 
tine—with  anything  that  would  help  him  get  me 
to  Colombo  and  medical  skill.  At  last,  eighteen 
hours  out  from  Marichchikkaddi,  the  Active  was 
in  the  harbor  and  I was  being  carried  to  the 
Grand  Oriental  Hotel. 

“What  about  the  two  bags  of  oysters,  the 

90 


The  Lure  of  the  Pearl 

captain  wishes  to  know?”  the  hotel  interpreter 
asked. 

“Oh,  give  them  to  the  men,”  was  the  answer; 
“I  have  ceased  to  care  for  pearl-studded  tiaras 
and  collars.  I ’m  glad  to  get  away  alive  from  the 
decaying  millions  of  oysters  at  the  fishery.  Even 
God’s  free  air  there  is  poisoned  by  them.  What 
I want  most  is  a doctor.” 


91 


CHAPTER  IV 


UPWARD  TO  THE  SHRINE  OF  BUDDHA 

FROM  Colombo  it  is  but  seventy-five  miles  to 
Ceylon’s  ancient  capital,  and  the  journey 
thither  is  picturesque  almost  beyond  description. 
For  fifty  miles  the  railway  leads  through  the  rich 
vegetation  of  the  lowlands,  with  groves  of  cocoa- 
nut  palms  seemingly  as  boundless  as  the  sea.  In  a 
suburb  of  Colombo  the  sacred  Kelani  River  is 
crossed,  at  a point  not  remote  from  the  Buddhist 
temple  claimed  to  be  contemporary  with  Gautama 
himself.  The  valley  of  the  Kelani  is  vivid  with 
rice-fields  of  green.  The  line  then  pushes  its  way 
through  a bewildering  medley  of  tropical  vegeta- 
tion—there  are  miles  of  cashew  and  breadfruit 
trees,  of  frangipani  and  jaks,  and  more  than  once 
a stately  talipot-palm  is  discerned  in  full  blossom 
— for  half  a century  the  tree  has  stored  its  vitality 
for  this  one  effort;  and  the  burst  of  splendor 
spent,  its  career  on  earth  is  ended.  For  twenty- 
five  miles  the  train  zigzags  up  hills,  running  now 
and  then  on  the  edge  of  a shelf  from  whence  the 
traveler  looks  down  hundreds  of  feet  sheer  upon 
foam-crested  rapids.  The  journey  from  Colombo 

92 


A LADY  OF  KANDY 


Upward  to  the  Shrine  of  Buddha 

to  Kandy  affords  one  of  the  memorable  experi- 
ences of  Ceylon. 

England  has  held  the  interior  region  of  the  is- 
land, controlled  for  centuries  by  the  Kandyan 
kings,  for  but  ninety  odd  years,  and  it  is  curious 
to  observe  wings  of  palaces  at  Kandy,  where  a 
semi-barbaric  rule  long  held  sway,  employed  now 
as  British  administrative  offices.  Little  antiquity 
is  discernible  in  the  old  hill  capital,  due  to 
former  rival  interests  of  the  Portuguese  and 
Dutch.  When  one  nation  had  control  of  the  pic- 
turesque town,  it  was  customary  to  efface  or  de- 
molish everything  that  the  other  had  done. 

Kandy  is  the  city  of  Buddha’s  tooth,  and  as 
such  is  the  object  of  unbounded  reverence  with 
more  than  four  hundred  million  inhabitants  of  the 
earth.  Oudh,  where  Gautama  Buddha  died,  lacks 
the  sacred  importance  of  Kandy;  and  the  sepul- 
cher at  Jerusalem  means  no  more  to  Christians, 
nor  Mecca  and  Medina  to  followers  of  Mahomet. 

Kandy  was  but  a mountain  village  when  the 
holy  molar  was  brought  here  in  the  sixteenth  cen- 
tury for  safe-keeping.  The  small  temple  wherein 
it  was  deposited  was  beautified  and  enlarged,  and 
finally  the  priesthood  made  the  place  their  princi- 
pal seat,  and  the  Kandyan  kings  later  made  the 
city  their  stronghold  and  capital  of  the  country. 

Thousands  of  pilgrims  come  yearly  to  offer  to 
the  Temple  of  the  Tooth  their  gifts  of  gold  and 
silver  ornaments,  coins,  jewels,  vestments  for  the 
priests,  even  fruits  and  flowers— and  these  devo- 
tees have  traveled  from  every  hamlet  of  Ceylon 

95 


East  of  Suez 


and  from  every  land  where  Buddha  has  believers 
— from  Nepaul,  the  Malay  Peninsula,  China,  Ja- 
pan, even  from  Siberia  and  Swedish  Lapland.  The 
kings  of  Burmali  and  Siam,  in  compliance  with 
the  wish  of  their  subjects,  send  annual  contribu- 
tions toward  the  support  of  the  temple  enshrining 
the  tooth;  and  Buddhist  priests  in  far-away  Ja- 
pan correspond  with  the  hierarchy  of  the  temple 
of  Kandy.  No  other  tooth  has  the  drawing  power 
of  this  one,  certainly. 

Strange  to  say,  Buddhism  has  been  cast  out 
from  India,  where  it  originated,  by  the  Hindu 
faith,  which  it  was  meant  to  reform.  In  India’s 
enormous  population  scarce  seven  millions  to-day 
worship  at  Buddha’s  shrine.  Christianity,  as 
well,  is  a stranger  to  the  land  where  it  was  born. 
It  appears  the  irony  of  fate  that  these  great  relig- 
ions, glorious  in  principle,  have  abiding  places 
without  number,  save  in  the  countries  where  they 
originated.  But  such  is  the  fact. 

Few  scholars  can  study  the  tenets  of  Buddhism 
without  the  conviction  that  it  is  a religion  of  strik- 
ing merit— that  is,  as  form  and  dogma  are  de- 
scribed by  writers  and  commentators ; but  as  prac- 
tised by  races  not  far  removed  from  pagan  illiter- 
acy, with  whom  idolatry  and  superstition  are  in- 
herent, it  may  no  longer  be  the  perfection  of  doc- 
trine that  was  espoused  by  Prince  Gautama. 

Sir  Edwin  Arnold,  who  thoroughly  knew  most 
Eastern  religions,  admired  enthusiastically  the 
precepts  of  Buddha,  and  no  one  can  read  his  writ- 
ings without  experiencing  some  regard  for  the 

. 96 


Upward  to  the  Shrine  of  Buddha 

Buddhism  of  literature.  In  “The  Light  of  Asia” 
the  five  commandments  of  the  great  religion  of 
the  Orient  are  thus  poetically  recited: 

Kill  not— for  Pity’s  sake— and  lest  ye  slay 

The  meanest  thing  upon  its  upward  way. 

Give  freely  and  receive,  but  take  from  none 

By  greed,  or  force  or  fraud,  what  is  his  own. 

Bear  not  false  witness,  slander  not,  nor  lie ; 

Truth  is  the  speech  of  inward  purity. 

Shun  drugs  and  drinks  which  work  the  writ  abuse ; 

Clear  minds,  clean  bodies,  need  no  Soma  juice. 

Touch  not  thy  neighbor’s  wife,  neither  commit 

Sins  of  the  flesh  unlawful  and  unfit. 

Whether  present-day  Buddhism  is  the  exact  re- 
ligion taught  by  the  princely  priest,  and  grace- 
fully described  by  the  English  poet,  matters  little 
— its  fountainhead  is  Kandy,  and  temple  and  de- 
pendencies of  the  sacred  bone  form  the  Vatican  of 
the  faith.  This  miraculous  tooth,  alleged  to  be 
the  left  eye-tooth  of  Gautama  Buddha,  and  taken 
from  the  ashes  of  his  funeral  pyre  twenty-five 
hundred  years  ago,  has  played  a mighty  part  in 
Eastern  intrigue,  and  wars  between  nations  have 
been  fought  over  it.  For  centuries  it  was  the 
priceless  marriage  dower  going  with  certain  fa- 
vored princesses  of  royal  blood.  It  was  brought 
from  India  to  Ceylon  in  the  fourth  century  after 

97 


East  of  Suez 


Christ.  The  Malabars  secured  it  by  conquest 
more  than  once,  the  Portuguese  had  it  for  a time 
at  Goa,  and  for  safety  it  was  brought  to  Kandy  in 
the  sixteenth  century,  and  it  has  there  since  been 
cared  for  with  scrupulous  fidelity. 

A relic  supported  by  so  much  history  should  at 
least  be  genuine— the  history  may  be  all  right,  but 
the  tooth  is  a shambling  hoax,  at  best  a crude 
proxy  for  the  molar  of  Gautama.  Intelligent 
priests  of  Buddhism  must  know  this,  but  the  mil- 
lions of  common  people  finding  solace  in  the  faith 
have  never  heard  the  truth— and  would  n’t  be- 
lieve it  if  they  did.  No  more  amazing  display 
of  faith  over  a reputed  sacred  relic  is  known  than 
is  associated  with  this  bogus  tooth  of  Kandy. 

Reference  to  any  library  of  unimpeachable 
works  on  the  world’s  religions  proves  conclu- 
sively that  the  actual  tooth  was  burned  by  the 
Catholic  archbishop  of  Goa  in  1560,  in  the  pres- 
ence of  the  viceroy  of  India  and  his  suite— this  is 
authentic  history.  Six  years  after  the  event  at 
Goa  a spurious  tooth  had  to  be  provided  to  effect 
an  international  marriage  long  under  contract, 
and  the  molar  of  a wild  boar  or  of  an  ape  was 
used.  This  tooth  eventually  was  brought  to  the 
town  nestling  in  the  hills  of  Ceylon,  and  surround- 
ing it  grew  the  capital  of  the  proud  kingdom  of 
the  Kandyans.  In  the  year  of  Waterloo,  the  Brit- 
ish overthrew  the  reigning  sovereign,  and  the 
bogus  tooth  and  its  temple  have  since  had  the  pro- 
tection of  English  rule. 

The  dimensions  of  the  tooth  are  fatal  to  its  pre- 

98 


TEMPLE  OF  THE  TOOTH,  KANDY 


Upward  to  the  Shrine  of  Buddha 

tended  genuineness,  for  it  is  a discolored  ivory 
two  inches  in  length  and  one  in  diameter.  No  hu- 
man mouth  ever  gave  shelter  to  such  a tooth.  To 
view  it  would  be  a test  of  credulity  too  trying- 
even  for  fanaticism  to  stand.  The  hoax,  con- 
sequently, is  concealed  from  sight.  On  important 
occasions  it  is  displayed— at  a distance.  When  the 
Duke  and  Duchess  of  York  visited  Kandy  the  high 
priests  of  the  temple  exhibited  the  tooth ; and  on 
occasions  it  is  supposed  to  be  carried  in  proces- 
sions through  the  streets  on  the  back  of  an  ele- 
phant—but  deception  and  trickery  in  connection 
with  the  tooth  come  easy. 

The  enshrined  humbug  reposes  on  a massive 
silver  table,  encrusted  with  gems  and  festooned 
with  jeweled  chains.  The  chamber  in  which  it  is 
kept  in  the  temple  is  stiflingly  hot,  with  atmos- 
phere heavy  from  the  perfume  of  flowers.  With- 
in six  or  eight  bell-shaped  metal  covers  the  tooth 
is  held  by  a standard  as  if  emerging  from  the  pet- 
als of  a lotus  flower  of  gold.  Visitors  to  the  mu- 
seum at  Colombo  may  see  a replica  of  the  relic  and 
its  setting:  it  is  a tawdry,  unimpressive  object. 

Glance  where  you  will  in  Kandy,  drive  in  any 
direction,  penetrate  any  avenue  or  footpath,  and 
priestly  disciples  of  Buddha,  of  every  age  from 
the  novice  to  the  patriarch  of  exalted  rank,  accost 
the  vision.  Pilgrims  appear  to  be  constantly 
arriving.  They  are  present  from  Jaffna  in  the 
north,  from  Galle  in  the  south,  from  Nuara  Eliya 
in  the  mountains,  from  everywhere— some  come 
on  foot,  some  by  curious  carts  drawn  by  buffaloes 


101 


East  of  Suez 


or  bullocks,  some  by  railroad  train.  All  are  un- 
shod, and  the  head  of  each  is  bare  and  shaven. 
Each  wears  the  robe  of  eternal  yellow,  with  an  arm 
and  shoulder  bare,  and  the  sunshade  and  palm 
fan  have  been  the  adjuncts  of  the  brotherhood 
since  Gautama  left  his  royal  parents’  house  to 
teach  the  word  of  Buddha. 

Celibacy  is  the  rule  of  the  priesthood.  Nothing 
can  be  less  obtrusive  than  the  demeanor  of  the 
brethren.  Visitors  to  their  temples  are  welcomed, 
and  courteous  replies  are  always  made  to  in- 
quiries. 

Cremation  is  general  in  the  priesthood,  but  ap- 
parently optional  with  others  of  the  faith.  When 
a dignitary  of  the  priesthood  passes  away  his  con- 
freres assemble  from  far  and  near  at  the  funeral 
pyre  to  do  him  honor.  The  incineration  usually 
takes  place  in  a palm  grove.  The  corpse  is  sur- 
rounded with  dried  wood,  made  additionally  in- 
flammable with  oils.  The  rites  of  the  pyre  include 
nothing  of  a sensational  character;  the  assem- 
blage chants  for  a time,  then  a priest  of  high  rank 
applies  the  torch,  and  in  an  hour  nothing  remains 
but  a mound  of  embers  and  ashes.  A cremation 
may  be  readily  witnessed  at  Kandy  or  Colombo, 
or  other  place  possessing  a considerable  popula- 
tion. 

The  peoples  of  low  caste  of  the  East  are  too 
numerous  to  be  catalogued.  India  teems  with 
them,  of  course,  and  the  paradise  island  of  Ceylon 
lias  a considerable  percentage  of  human  beings 
denied  by  their  betters  of  almost  every  privilege 

102 


Upward  to  the  Shrine  of  Buddha 

save  breathing  the  free  air  of  heaven.  The  low- 
lands and  coastal  regions  have  been  so  commer- 
cialized that  human  pariahs  are  there  almost 
overlooked— but  they  are  at  every  turning  of  the 
road  in  every  hamlet,  everywhere.  Kandy,  once 
royal  city,  knows  the  abhorred  low  caste  to-day  as 
it  did  five  hundred  years  ago,  for  in  plain  view  of 
the  capital  in  the  hills  there  are  settlements  of 
men  and  women  still  excluded  from  communion 
with  the  world  by  reason  of  a royal  curse  pro- 
nounced centuries  ago— and  it  is  a condition  worse 
than  death  itself. 

Representatives  of  the  Rodiya  caste  may  be 
seen  any  day  by  pedestrians  in  the  city’s  outskirts. 
There  are  not  many  of  them,  fortunately— per- 
haps a thousand  all  told.  Tradition  has  it  that 
hundreds  of  years  ago  a vengeful  monarch  con- 
demned their  race  to  never-ending  degradation 
for  having  supplied  the  royal  table  with  human 
flesh  instead  of  venison.  Custom  forces  these 
poor  mortals  to  ford  or  swim  a stream,  instead  of 
using  a ferry ; and  forbids  their  drawing  water  at 
public  wells.  They  must  not  live  in  houses  like 
other  people,  but  in  hovels  constructed  usually  by 
leaning  a hurdle  against  a rock,  and  their  men  and 
women  must  never  clothe  their  bodies  above  the 
waist.  Until  recent  years  courts  of  justice  have 
been  closed  to  them,  and  if  overtaken  on  their  trav- 
els by  darkness  they  must  find  shelter  in  caves  or 
abandoned  hovels.  They  recognize  their  degra- 
dation by  falling  on  their  knees  when  addressing 
even  toilers  on  the  highway,  and  shout  a warning 

103 


East  of  Suez 


on  the  approach  of  a traveler,  that  he  may  halt 
long  enough  for  them  to  get  off  the  road  to  secure 
his  passing  without  possibility  of  defilement. 

These  groveling  worms  of  the  earth  are  nomin- 
ally Buddhists,  but  are  forbidden  to  enter  a tem- 
ple. Hence  they  pray  “standing  afar  off.”  De- 
mon worship  is  accredited  to  them.  Their  head- 
man can  officiate  only  when  he  has  obtained  the 
sanction  of  the  common  jailor  of  the  district. 
Even  to  ask  alms  they  must  not  enter  a fenced 
property,  and  it  is  said  at  Kandy  that  water  over 
which  their  shadows  have  fallen  is  held  to  be  so 
defiled  that  other  natives  will  not  use  it  until  puri- 
fied by  the  sun’s  rays.  And  thus  it  is ; their  race  is 
penalized  in  every  manner,  and  the  ban  goes  un- 
challenged by  the  miserable  beings. 

Their  denial  by  mankind  of  ordinary  fellowship 
has  driven  them  to  filthy  and  beastly  habits.  They 
devour  the  flesh  of  monkeys  and  tortoises,  even 
carrion,  it  is  claimed ; and  of  late  years  they  haunt 
feasts  and  ceremonials  hoping  to  obtain  fragments 
of  food  thrown  from  the  tables  of  their  betters. 
Now  and  then  they  are  paid  something  for  watch- 
ing fields,  and  for  burying  carcasses  of  dead  cattle. 
It  is  not  known  that  they  are  thieves,  but  they  are 
shunned  as  if  they  were.  In  emergencies,  when 
there  is  a scarcity  of  labor,  they  are  induced  to 
work  on  tea  estates,  or  at  road  mending;  but  the 
habits  of  vagabondage  are  too  rooted  to  allow 
their  remaining  long  in  useful  employment. 

Superior  in  every  way  to  their  men,  the  Ro- 
diya  women  are  the  most  beautiful  in  all  Ceylon. 

104 


CREMATION  OF  A BUDDHIST  PRIEST 


Upward  to  the  Shrine  of  Buddha 

Their  scantiness  of  raiment,  it  is  pleaded  in  their 
behalf,  is  due  in  no  sense  to  immodesty.  Rodiya 
girls  wander  the  country  as  dancers  and  jugglers, 
and  their  erect  figures,  elastic  step,  and  regalness 
of  carriage,  would  be  envied  by  the  proudest 
woman  promenading  Vanity  Fair;  some  of  them 
have  faces  so  perfect  in  a classic  way  that  a sculp- 
tor or  painter  might  make  himself  famous  by  re- 
producing them. 

Believe  not  that  these  miserable  people  repre- 
sent the  lowest  grade  of  degradation  in  Lanka’s 
isle,  for  there  are  two  outcast  races  so  far  beneath 
them  in  the  social  scale  as  to  be  avoided  by  Rodi- 
yas  as  if  they  reeked  with  a pestilential  disease. 
These  castes  are  hopelessly  beyond  the  pale. 

British  rule  in  Asia  recognizes  no  caste  distinc- 
tions, but  it  has  been  a humane  work  of  the  wives 
of  several  English  governors  of  Ceylon  to  seek  to 
improve  the  position  of  the  women  of  the  Rodiya 
caste,  especially  of  the  young  girls.  Some  benefit 
is  claimed  as  a result  of  the  efforts  of  the  English 
women— but  the  majesty  and  power  of  Great  Bri- 
tain are  puny  institutions  compared  with  the  force 
of  caste  among  native  races.  To  keep  down  the 
Rodiya  population  a certain  Kandyan  king,  it  is 
stated  on  good  authority,  used  to  have  a goodly 
number  of  them  shot  each  year. 


107 


CHAPTER  V 


in  ceylon's  hill  country 

WHEN  good  Kandyans  discourse  in  flowery 
vein,  they  say  Kandy  is  only  forty  miles 
from  heaven.  Visitors  who  have  fallen  under  the 
charm  of  the  place  are  more  likely  to  wonder  at 
their  moderation  than  question  their  ability  to 
measure  celestial  distances.  If  Gautama  Bud- 
dha’s “eternal  rest”  were  to  be  had  on  earth, 
Kandy  would  surely  be  the  reward  of  Nirvana 
promised  those  who  have  acquired  merit. 

The  beauty  of  Kandy  is  based  upon  natural- 
ness; it  is  not  grand  like  Taormina  in  Sicily,  nor 
produced  by  nature  and  art  in  combination  like 
Monte  Carlo.  Everything  connected  with  the  spot 
is  fascinating,  even  the  jungle  that  by  day  harbors 
the  jackals  which  sometimes  make  night  hideous 
to  sojourners.  Everybody  appears  happy;  even 
elephants  hauling  timber  in  the  suburbs  toil 
cheerfully. 

This  inland  province  that  formed  the  kingdom 
of  Kandy  preserved  its  integrity  throughout  the 
Portuguese  and  Dutch  invasions  of  the  island ; and 
the  English  were  in  possession  of  the  coast  section 
full  nineteen  years  before  the  Kandyan  monarchy 
succumbed  to  their  power. 

108 


In  Ceylon’s  Hill  Country 

This  beautiful  city  was  a different  place  under 
the  native  kings.  They  loved  grandeur,  appar- 
ently, but  it  was  the  grandeur  of  selfish  surround- 
ings and  luxury.  The  lake  now  the  center  of  the 
city  was  constructed  by  the  last  king,  it  is  true; 
but  its  shore  witnessed  atrocities  never  surpassed 
in  savage  excess.  Near  the  spot  where  stands  a 
monastery  of  yellow  robed  monks  of  Buddha,  the 
last  king  assembled  his  people  in  1814  to  witness 
the  punishment  of  the  innocent  wife  and  children 
of  a fleeing  official  accused  of  treason.  By  the 
blow  of  a sword  the  head  of  each  child  was  sev- 
ered from  its  body  in  the  mother’s  presence,  even 
that  of  the  babe  wrenched  from  her  breast.  The 
heads  were  placed  in  a mortar,  and  the  woman 
forced  under  threat  of  disgraceful  torture  to 
pound  them  with  a huge  pestle. 

When  news  of  this  reached  the  coast  the  English 
determined  to  intervene  in  the  interests  of  human- 
ity. While  the  horror  was  yet  fresh  in  the  public 
mind,  a party  of  native  merchants  of  Colombo 
came  to  Kandy  to  trade.  The  fiendish  king 
ordered  them  seized  and  horribly  mutilated. 
When,  a few  weeks  later,  the  survivors  re- 
turned to  the  sea-coast  deprived  of  ears,  noses  and 
hands— with  the  severed  members  tied  to  their 
necks— the  English  decided  to  act  immediately. 
Three  months  later  Kandy  was  in  their  possession, 
and  the  king  an  exile  in  southern  India. 

From  that  time,  with  the  exception  of  a few 
years  when  the  hereditary  Kandyan  chiefs  were 
troublesome  through  finding  their  privileges  cir- 

10Q 


East  of  Suez 


cumscribed,  the  progress  of  Ceylon  as  a whole  has 
been  remarkable.  Perhaps  the  finest  example  of 
benefits  coming  with  England’s  colonial  rule  is 
this  “Eden  of  the  Eastern  Wave.”  Slavery  and 
forced  labor  on  public  works  have  been 
abolished,  fine  roads  constructed  everywhere,  and 
adequate  educational  facilities  placed  within 
easy  reach. 

A visitor  perceives  no  squalor,  few  beggars, 
and  apparently  no  genuine  poverty.  All  these  ad- 
vantages have  been  secured  practically  without 
taxing  the  natives  in  any  manner.  Uniform  con- 
tentment, consequently,  is  everywhere  visible. 
The  naked  babies,  looking  like  india-rubber  dolls, 
have  apparently  never  learned  to  cry. 

Oddly  enough,  the  English  made  Kandy  the 
Saint  Helena  of  Arabi  Pasha’s  exile,  until  the 
broken  and  aged  man  was  permitted  a few  years 
since  to  return  to  his  beloved  Egypt. 

Itself  beautiful  with  poinsettia,  bougainvillea, 
crotons,  hibiscus  and  palms,  a botanical  garden  in 
Kandy  would  seem  to  have  no  proper  place.  But 
the  city  possesses  one  that  is  almost  unique  among 
tropical  gardens.  It  is  in  the  suburb  of  Perade- 
niya,  four  miles  out,  and  it  is  embraced  on  three 
sides  by  Ceylon’s  principal  stream,  the  Mahavali- 
ganga.  For  eighty  years  the  Ceylon  government 
has  treated  the  Peradeniya  garden  and  its  associ- 
ated experimental  stations  as  an  investment— and 
it  has  paid  well,  for  through  its  agency  the  culti- 
vation of  cinchona,  cacao,  rubber  and  other  eco- 
nomic crops  has  been  introduced  to  the  people. 


no 


TREES  IN  PERADENIYA  GARDEN,  KANDY 


In  Ceylon’s  Hill  Country 

Throughout  Asia  the  Peradeniya  garden  is  fa- 
mous. Whether  the  claim  that  it  is  the  finest  in 
the  world  be  correct  would  require  an  expert  to 
determine.  The  botanical  garden  at  Demerara 
may  be  as  good,  if  not  larger  and  better. 

A layman  visiting  Peradeniya  returns  to 
Kandy  in  a state  of  bewilderment.  He  has  seen  so 
many  attractive  and  strange  manifestations  of 
nature  that  lucid  description  is  beyond  his  power. 
He  is  aware,  nevertheless,  that  he  has  viewed 
nearly  every  tree,  shrub,  plant  and  vine  known  to 
tropical  and  subtropical  climes;  shrubs  that  pro- 
duce every  spice,  perfume  and  flavoring  he  ever 
heard  of,  or  that  contribute  to  medicine,  as  well. 

At  Peradeniya  the  palm  family  has  nearly  a 
hundred  representatives,  including  the  areca, 
palmyra,  talipot,  royal,  fan,  traveler’s,  date  and 
cocoanut.  The  forty  or  more  varieties  of  crotons 
include  the  curious  corkscrew  of  the  West  Indies, 
and  range  extravagantly  in  colors  and  markings. 
Huge  Assam  rubber-trees  have  exposed  roots  sug- 
gesting a tangle  of  octopi.  A tree  noticeable  for 
its  perfect  foliage  is  the  breadfruit ; and  there 
are  sensitive  plants  that  shrink  from  intimate  at- 
tention, and  water-plants  whose  roots  need  not 
come  into  contact  with  the  earth. 

Here  and  there  are  kola  trees,  cardamom 
bushes,  aloe  plants  from  which  sisal  is  drawn, 
camphor  and  cinnamon  shrubs,  and  probably 
every  species  of  the  parasitical  family,  depending 
like  many  human  beings  upon  stronger  relatives 
or  neighbors  for  support.  The  orchid  enclosure 

113 


6 


East  of  Suez 


would  arouse  any  collector’s  covetousness.  There 
are  foliage  plants  producing  leaves  counterfeiting 
elephant  ears,  and  others  that  look  like  full  spread 
peacock  tails.  A small  leaf  which  the  official 
guide  of  the  gardens  is  obviously  partial  to  is 
deep  green  when  held  to  the  light,  purple  when 
slightly  turned,  and  deep  red  if  looked  at  from  an- 
other angle.  The  visitor  moves  swiftly  into  the 
sunlight  when  told  that  he  is  standing  in  the  shade 
of  the  deadly  upas. 

A traveler  approaching  the  island  of  Ceylon 
hears  constantly  of  the  wonders  of  Peradeniya; 
and  some  statements  in  praise  of  the  garden  are 
taken  usually  with  reserve,  especially  that  assert- 
ing there  are  trees  there  which  develop  so  rapidly 
that  the  spectator  can  actually  see  them  grow.  This 
seems  incredible,  but  there  is  ample  basis  for  the 
statement.  After  a rain  the  fronds  of  the  giant 
bamboo  frequently  grow  a foot  in  the  course  of  a 
day.  At  the  office  of  the  director  of  the  garden 
are  records  of  many  measurements  proving  that 
fronds  have  lengthened  a half  inch  in  an  hour.  A 
tree  growing  a half  inch  in  sixty  minutes  is  a Cey- 
lon fact.  The  first  time  I went  to  Peradeniya, 
thousands  of  flying-foxes,  suspended  bat-like  from 
the  giant  bamboos  a hundred  feet  from  the  earth, 
were  sleeping  away  the  day,  while  soaring  above 
the  trees  were  hundreds  of  these  queer  objects, 
scolding  like  disturbed  crows. 

Peradeniya ’s  visitors  come  from  every  land  in 
the  world,  some  traveling  great  distances  to  see 
the  wonders  of  the  garden.  One  has  not  to  be  ar- 

114 


TAMIL  COOLIE  SETTING  OUT  TEA  PLANTS 


In  Ceylon’s  Hill  Country 

boriculturist  or  botanist  to  appreciate  the  estab- 
lishment ; it  is  always  entertaining,  sometimes 
amusing,  and  appeals  variously  to  the  tastes  of 
visitors.  For  example,  the  Mexican  goes  involun- 
tarily to  the  aloe  from  which  his  beloved  pulque  is 
made,  the  Egyptian  to  the  date-palm,  the  Connec- 
ticut man  to  the  nutmeg  grove,  and  the  New 
Yorker  to  the  tree  under  which  handfuls  of  cloves 
may  be  scooped  up  without  charge,  whereas  at 
home  they  are  acquired  one  at  a time  at  consider- 
able expense. 

Explore  the  highways  and  byways  of  Kandy 
keenly  as  one  may,  nothing  is  in  evidence  explain- 
ing its  manifest  prosperity— the  place  has  no  dis- 
tinctive product  or  business.  It  is  the  seat  of  man- 
agement, however,  of  the  island’s  greatest  indus- 
try-tea raising. 

In  Ceylon  tea  is  “king.”  This  being  the  fact, 
no  visitor  to  the  town  where  the  Planters’  Associ- 
ation has  its  administrative  machinery  can  close 
his  ears  to  tea  talk.  Elsewhere  people  talk  over 
their  tea-cups ; in  Kandy,  they  talk  tea  over  every 
other  kind  of  cup.  Kandy’s  big  hotel  bristles  with 
planters  in  overspreading  sun  hats,  as  do  club  and 
friendly  bungalow  verandas.  Some  are  “down” 
for  a day  (and  a night)  from  up-country  estates, 
while  others  are  “up”  from  smallish  properties 
at  levels  below  Kandy.  Nearly  all  have  to  pur- 
chase supplies  and  draw  a few  sacks  of  rupees 
from  the  bank  with  which  to  pay  off  their  coolies. 
But  some  have  come  to  discuss  market  conditions 
and  prospects  with  their  agents.  A few,  not  yet 

117 


East  of  Suez 


wholly  emancipated  from  the  social  side  of  life  in 
which  they  were  reared,  have  journeyed  to  Kandy 
to  rub  shoulders  for  a few  days  with  civilization. 

The  orbit  of  each  and  every  one  of  these  trans- 
planted Britons  is  tea,  and  this  in  its  primal  form. 
They  can  have  no  concern  with  Steel  common, 
Amalgamated  copper  or  Erie  4’s,  and  to  them  the 
jargon  of  stock  exchanges  would  be  as  meaning- 
less as  Sanskrit  platitudes.  Their  speculative 
medium  is  tea— tea  in  bulk,  and  pretty  large  bulk 
at  that. 

The  daily  cable  from  London  summarizing  the 
tea  market  interests  each  of  these  men  as  vitally 
as  the  tale  of  the  ticker  interests  the  American 
taking  a flier  in  stocks.  The  story  is  told  in  two 
or  three  lines,  and  by  a presentation  of  numerals 
appearing  exceedingly  unimportant  to  the  so- 
journer whose  operations  in  tea  never  exceeded 
the  purchase  of  a pound  package. 

Yes,  the  figures  tell  the  story— a tale  of  occa- 
sional success,  but  often  of  failure  and  woe.  A 
bracketed  set  of  fractions  explains  the  range  of 
prices  for  broken  pekoes,  another  set  deals  with 
common  pekoes,  another  with  orange  pekoes,  and 
still  another  with  common  souchongs.  Then  fol- 
low such  words  as  “steady,”  “generally  firm,” 
and  “somewhat  lower”— each  a phrase  with  po- 
tential significance.  The  crux  of  the  communica- 
tion, like  that  of  a school-girl’s  letter,  comes 
last.  If  it  reads  “general  market  closed  l-8th 
penny  up,”  the  planter  has  visions  of  happiness 
and  affluence,  and  forthwith  orders  a “peg.”  But 

ll8 


TAMIL  GIRL  PLUCKING  TEA 


In  Ceylon’s  Hill  Country 

if  the  postscript  says  “l-8th  down,”  the  young 
planter  foresees  nothing  but  disaster,  and  may 
consider  levanting  with  the  bags  of  rupees  by  the 
next  steamer  from  Colombo.  A planter  is  always 
a bull  on  prices,  while  the  important  buyer  in  Eu- 
rope is  chronically  bearish. 

The  yearly  tea  product  of  Ceylon  is  aggrega- 
ting 155,000,000  pounds,  and  of  this  Uncle  Sam 
purchases  12,000,000  pounds,  while  98,000,000  go 
to  Great  Britain.  The  value  of  the  annual  output 
varies  little  from  $21,000,000— and  from  this  Cey- 
lon supports  itself  so  comfortably  that  the  tea- 
plant  seems  to  merit  adoption  as  the  emblem  of 
the  colony. 

The  rise  of  the  industry  affords  one  of  the  most 
remarkable  instances  of  rapid  development  of  an 
agricultural  pursuit.  Coffee  used  to  be  the  domin- 
ating crop  in  the  island,  until  ‘‘coffee  blight” 
ruined  the  industry.  Tea  was  then  experimented 
with.  In  1875  barely  a thousand  acres  were  under 
tea;  now  the  acreage  is  385,000.  A journey  from 
Kandy  to  Nuwara  Eliya,  in  the  mountains,  is 
through  an  interminable  tea-garden,  and  on  every 
hand  is  proof  of  substantial  investment  of  capital. 
The  choicest  crops  are  raised  between  five  and  six 
thousand  feet  above  sea-level,  and  lands  in  this 
zone  are  worth  as  much  as  $500  an  acre.  The  sci- 
entific cultivation  of  tea  paid  its  pioneers  hand- 
somely, but  the  current  opinion  is  that  overpro- 
duction is  killing  prices,  and  that  a new  crop  must 
be  sought— probably  rubber. 

Ceylon’s  important  tea  estates  are  the  property 
121 


East  of  Suez 


of  companies,  whose  shares  are  dealt  in  on  the 
London  and  Colombo  stock  exchanges.  Small 
plantations  are  owned  by  individuals,  usually  the 
persons  conducting  them.  One  or  two  thousand 
Europeans,  mainly  Englishmen  and  Scotchmen, 
are  employed  on  the  important  estates  as  mana- 
gers, assistants  and  accountants.  Hosts  of  young 
Britons  work  a year  or  two  without  compensation 
for  the  experience.  They  are  called  “creepers,” 
and  some  of  them  eventually  obtain  salaried  offi- 
ces, or  embark  in  the  industry  on  their  own  ac- 
count. The  laboring  force  on  an  estate  is  provided 
chiefly  by  Tamil  coolies  from  southern  India,  and 
numbers  from  one  to  two  thousand.  Both  men 
and  women  contrive  to  lay  by  a competence  at  a 
wage  rate  of  from  eight  to  fifteen  cents  a day. 

If  let  alone,  the  tea-plant  would  grow  to  be  a 
tree  eighteen  or  twenty  feet  high,  but  by  generous 
top  pruning  it  is  kept  down  to  three  feet,  thus  be- 
coming a squat  bush  possessing  a biggish  leafing 
area.  Every  eight  or  twelve  days  the  shoots  and 
young  leaves  are  plucked— when  treated  these  be- 
come the  tea  of  commerce.  Tea-plants  are  alike, 
speaking  generally,  grades  being  effected  by  the 
discrimination  of  picker  and  sorter.  Fresh  buds 
and  tender  young  leaves  make  the  pekoes,  older 
ones  the  souchongs.  Tea  gathered  exclusively 
from  buds  and  tips  is  called  “flowery;”  if  the  first 
young  leaf  be  included,  it  is  “orange  pekoe.”  In 
order  of  quality  the  Ceylon  grades  are:  orange 
pekoe,  pekoe,  pekoe-souchong,  souchong,  congou, 
and  dust. 


122 


A KANDYAN  CHIEFTAIN 


In  Ceylon’s  Hill  Country 

Tea-plants  are  perennial,  and  are  set  about  four 
feet  apart  on  hillsides.  At  three  years  of  age  they 
become  productive.  Familiar  sights  in  the  hills 
are  the  coolies  with  baskets  of  slips  setting  out 
plants  wherever  unemployed  spaces  may  be  found, 
and  groups  of  Tamil  girls  plucking  buds  and 
young  leaves  from  mature  bushes.  These  girls 
are  happy  countenanced,  some  slender  and  grace- 
ful in  carriage  and  movement,  and  none  express 
objection  to  being  snapshotted  by  travelers.  The 
girls’  baskets  are  emptied  and  contents  systemati- 
cally sorted  at  convenient  places  in  the  field,  or  at 
the  factory.  Essential  to  every  important  estate 
is  the  factory,  for  there  the  leaves  are  withered, 
broken  by  rolling,  fermented,  fired,  and  finally 
sifted  into  grades  preparatory  to  packing  in  lead- 
lined  boxes  ready  to  be  despatched  to  the  markets 
of  the  universe. 

It  is  reassuring  to  witness  the  system  and  scru- 
pulous cleanliness  of  every  step  employed  in  pro- 
ducing Ceylon  tea.  Anybody  who  has  spent  a day 
on  an  up-country  estate  is  fairly  certain  to  be 
friendly  to  Ceylon  tea  the  rest  of  his  life,  for 
modern  machinery  does  much  of  the  work  which 
in  China  and  Japan  is  performed  by  hands  none 
too  clean  and  amid  surroundings  none  too  health- 
ful. 


125 


CHAPTER  VI 


BOMBAY  AND  ITS  PARSEE  “jEES”  AND  “BHOYS” 

THE  Parsee  is  the  only  sect  holding  religious 
tenets  strange  enough  to  stamp  them  as 
“peculiar  people”  who  amount  to  much  in  the 
material  affairs  of  life.  Every  country  possesses 
groups  of  people  having  religious  beliefs  and 
practices  which  attract  to  them  a curious  interest ; 
but  Bombay’s  Parsee  colony  is  the  only  illustra- 
tion of  a brotherhood  following  strange  lives  who 
shine  resplendently  in  the  financial  and  social 
worlds. 

Everything  in  Bombay  is  dominated  by  the 
Parsee  element,  and  every  public  hospital  and 
other  charitable  institution,  public  statue,  or 
drinking  fountain,  is  the  benefaction  of  a Parsee. 
The  mansions  and  finest  villas  are  Parsee  homes, 
the  leaders  of  club  life  are  Parsees,  and  almost  ev- 
ery bank  and  influential  commercial  house  bears  a 
Parsee  name  on  its  door.  Bombay’s  population  is 
not  far  from  nine  hundred  thousand,  of  which  the 
Parsees  number  only  sixty  thousand— but  this  mi- 
nority impresses  its  importance  on  the  majority 
and  gives  a character  of  unique  interest  to  the  city. 
These  dominating  people  are  Indians  only  by 

126 


The  Parsee 


adoption.  Twelve  hundred  years  ago  the  Moham- 
medan conquerors  of  Persia  persecuted  the  disci- 
ples of  Zoroaster  to  an  extent  that  many  of  the 
strongest  men  and  women  of  the  faith  fled  to  India 
for  safety,  and  the  Parsees  of  to-day  are  the  de- 
scendants of  these  refugees.  For  generations 
they  have  made  education  a feature,  have  always 
helped  each  other,  and  been  extremely  clannish,  al- 
though preserving  toward  people  of  other  reli- 
gions a respectful  attitude.  Their  creed,  claimed  to 
have  descended  from  the  Hebrew  prophet  Daniel, 
is  expressed  in  three  precepts  of  two  words  each : 
Good  thoughts,  good  words,  good  deeds.  Orthodox 
Parsees  wear  a white  girdle  of  three  coils  as  re- 
minder of  these  principles ; but  present-day  Par- 
see  men  have  discarded  all  evidences  of  their 
creed  save  the  designating  vizorless  cap,  and 
dress  in  garments  of  European  pattern,  and 
their  women  are  garbed  in  robes  of  delicately- 
shaded  and  clinging  silks,  and  wear  embroidered 
mantillas  on  their  heads. 

Most  Parsees  are  superbly  educated,  variously 
accomplished,  and  speak  English  fluently.  Their 
equipages  are  the  smartest  in  Bombay,  and  every 
walk  of  life  is  led  by  them.  The  great  fortunes  of 
this  part  of  India  are  theirs,  and  Parsee  names 
are  identified  with  everything  contributing  to 
Bombay’s  importance.  These  names  are  strik- 
ingly peculiar,  are  usually  of  from  four  to  six  syl- 
lables, the  last  being  usually  “jee”  or  “bhoy.” 
The  Jeejeeblioy  family  is  intensely  Parsee,  of 
course,  and  important  enough  to  possess  an  Eng- 

127 


East  of  Suez 


lish  baronetcy.  The  city’s  principal  hospital  was 
the  gift  of  Jamsetjee  Jeejeebhoy.  Other  families 
of  renown  in  the  financial  world  are  the  Ready- 
moneys,  Jehangirs  and  Sassoons. 

Turn  where  you  may  the  eye  meets  something 
donated  to  the  public  by  generous  Parsees.  These 
people  have  long  been  loyal  supporters  of  British 
rule  in  India,  and  frequently  able  to  neutralize 
Hindu  or  Mohammedan  opposition  to  a public 
measure.  Baronetcies  and  knighthoods  have  con- 
sequently been  showered  upon  them  from  London. 
Incidentally,  a good  deal  of  the  money  with  which 
hospitals  and  libraries  were  given  by  great  Par- 
sees of  a former  generation  came  as  reward  for 
running  a successful  “corner”  in  Indian  cotton  at 
the  time  of  America’s  civil  war.  Lancashire  mills 
could  get  no  staple  from  the  Southern  states,  and 
astute  Bombay  capitalists,  securing  control  of  the 
native  crop,  held  the  same  until  the  price  ad- 
vanced from  ten  or  twelve  cents  to  a dollar  a 
pound.  The  fruits  of  this  coup.,  some  of  them  at 
least,  dotted  Bombay  with  noble  buildings  and 
statues. 

Some  Parsees  drive  public  street  vehicles,  work 
on  tramways  and  railways,  and  pursue  humbler 
vocations,  it  is  true ; but  most  Parsees  dwell  in 
princely  homes  and  go  to  their  offices  and  clubs  in 
splendidly  appointed  broughams  and  victorias. 
Success  in  life  even  in  Parseedom  is  based  upon 
the  principle  of  survival  of  the  fittest— or  astutest. 

The  Parsees  stoutly  deny  that  they  are  fire  wor- 
shippers. The  sacred  flame  perpetually  burning 

128 


PARSEE  TOWER  OP  SILENCE,  BOMBAY 


The  Parsee 


in  their  houses  of  worship,  brought  by  their  an- 
cestors from  Persia,  is  but  a symbol,  they  insist. 
God,  according  to  their  faith,  is  the  emblem  of 
glory,  refulgence,  and  spiritual  life ; therefore 
they  face  the  holy  flame  when  praying  as  the  most 
fitting  symbol  of  the  Deity.  In  the  open  air  they 
prostrate  themselves  when  praying  to  the  setting 
sun.  Parsee  temples  are  plain  to  severity,  with 
walls  bare  and  floors  uncovered  and  empty;  but 
there  is  always  the  recess  wherein  burns  the 
sacred  fire  of  incense  and  sandalwood. 

The  method  of  dealing  with  the  Parsee  dead  is 
startlingly  original,  and  said  to  be  in  strict  keep- 
ing with  the  teaching  of  Zoroaster.  According  to 
Parsee  tenets  fire  is  too  highly  venerated  to  be 
polluted  by  burning  the  dead,  while  water  is 
equally  respected,  and  Mother  Earth  as  well. 
Hence  the  Parsees  'offer  their  dead  to  the  elements 
and  the  birds  of  the  air,  and  the  bones  of  rich  and 
poor,  high  and  low,  even  of  the  malefactor  and 
suicide,  are  consigned  to  eternity  in  crumbled 
state  in  a common  pit. 

The  Towers  of  Silence  occupy  the  finest  site  on 
Malabar  Hill,  overlooking  beautiful  Bombay,  and 
high  above  the  Arabian  Sea— it  is  Nature’s  beauty 
spot,  embowered  in  graceful  shrubbery  and  palms, 
with  fragrant  flowers  everywhere.  The  governor 
of  Bombay  Presidency  resides  at  Malabar  Point, 
further  along,  and  the  homes  of  men  high  in  offi- 
cialdom or  commerce  occupy  every  available  site 
in  the  neighborhood.  The  Towers,  five  in  number, 
are  of  whitewashed  stone  and  cement,  275  feet  in 

131 


East  of  Suez 


circumference,  and  perhaps  twenty-five  feet  high. 
An  iron  door  admits  the  corpse  of  the  Parsee,  and 
once  within  the  strange  building  it  is  proffered 
to  the  birds  of  the  air— gloating  vultures,  coarse 
and  repugnant  in  every  aspect. 

Four  carriers  of  the  dead  are  seen  approaching 
the  beautiful  garden  with  a bier  on  their  shoul- 
ders. Two  bearded  men,  the  only  living  persons 
permitted  to  enter  a Tower,  come  next.  Then  fol- 
low from  fifty  to  a hundred  mourners  and  friends 
in  pure  white  robes,  walking  two  and  two,  each 
couple  holding  a handkerchief  between  them  in 
token  of  a united  grief.  The  apex  of  the  hill 
reached,  the  mourners  turn  into  the  house  of 
prayer,  wherein  the  eternal  fire  is  burning,  or  take 
position  beneath  spreading  palms  for  solitary 
meditation.  The  bearers  deliver  the  corpse  to  the 
bearded  functionaries  at  the  entrance  to  the 
Tower,  and  these  carry  it  within.  The  floor  of  the 
Tower  is  of  iron  grating  with  three  circles 
whereon  the  corpses  are  placed.  The  inner  circle 
is  for  children,  the  next  for  women,  and  the  outer 
for  men. 

The  bearded  men  are  lost  to  view  for  a minute 
or  two  only,  and  their  concluding  office  within  is  to 
remove  the  shroud,  leaving  the  body  wholly  bare. 
The  iron  door  clangs  as  they  emerge,  there  is  a 
mighty  whir  of  wings,  and  in  a twinkling  the 
corpse  is  in  possession  of  hundreds  of  greedy, 
competing  vultures.  In  twenty  minutes  not  a ves- 
tige of  flesh  remains  on  the  bones,  and  the  loath- 
some birds  resume  their  watch  from  the  edge  of 

132 


The  Parsee 


the  Tower  for  the  next  comer.  Their  experienced 
gaze  perceives  a funeral  procession  a mile  away 
in  the  direction  of  the  city,  and  a signal  cry  is  so 
readily  understood  by  vultures  resting  on  trees  in 
the  neighborhood  that  a unanimous  attendance  is 
assured  long  before  the  corpse  passes  the  portal  of 
the  grounds. 

The  human  skeletons  are  left  within  the  Tower 
to  disintegrate  by  action  of  sun  and  wind,  heat 
and  cold.  In  time  the  bearded  men,  gloved  and 
with  tongs,  remove  them  to  a vast  well  in  the  mid- 
dle of  the  enclosure,  where  with  lapse  of  time  they 
turn  to  dust. 

Corpses  being  considered  unclean  by  Parsee 
standards,  carriers  of  the  dead,  as  well  as  those 
who  enter  the  Towers,  are  assigned  to  a class  by 
themselves,  and  forbidden  to  mix  with  others  of 
their  strange  religion.  There  is  a superstition 
that  an  awful  curse  would  he  visited  upon  an  un- 
authorized person  whose  gaze  fell  upon  a body  or 
skeleton  inside  a Tower  of  Silence.  The  habili- 
ments of  those  whose  duty  takes  them  within  are 
always  destroyed  before  they  leave  the  grounds. 

Whatever  may  be  claimed  in  defense  of  the  Par- 
see method  of  dealing  with  their  dead,  from  a san- 
itary standpoint,  the  custom  possesses  an  aspect 
gruesome  in  the  extreme.  The  Hindus’  system  of 
burning  on  the  river  bank  is  even  less  repulsive. 

If  any  city  in  the  East  is  sport-mad  it  is  Bom- 
bay. Men  work  there  mornings  and  engage  in 
something  of  a sportive  character  afternoons.  The 
school-boy,  even,  slings  his  hooks  from  a hockey 

133 


East  of  Suez 


stick,  and  the  departmental  clerk  sets  out  for  an 
afternoon’s  sociability  accompanied  by  his  faith- 
ful tennis  racquet.  Nowhere  can  better  polo  be 
seen  than  on  the  Marine  Lines  Maidan ; as  for 
cricket,  there  probably  are  more  players  in  Bom- 
bay, British  and  native,  than  in  any  town  of  its 
population  in  England— and  Bombay’s  cricket  is 
of  the  best.  More  than  once  have  crack  teams  out 
from  England  been  heartlessly  beaten  by  local 
Parsee  players.  Golf  is  considered  too  slow.  The 
next  best  thing  to  being  a member  of  the  nobility 
is  for  a Briton  to  belong  to  the  Royal  Bombay 
Yacht  Club,  for  it  gives  him  the  cachet  to  every- 
thing Asiatic.  The  club-house  on  the  Apollo  Bun- 
der possesses  the  best  situation  on  the  water 
front,  and  from  its  verandas  fashionables  watch 
matches  that  are  sailed  with  consummate  skill. 
During  winter  months  foot-ball  appeals  strongly 
to  the  soldier  class,  while  motor-car  races  and 
trials  appear  to  be  daily  events. 

It  is  the  horse  that  is  king,  however,  in  Bom- 
bay’s pastimes.  The  Hunt  Club  sends  the  smart 
set  to  the  suburbs  now  and  then,  and  tent-pegging 
and  pig-sticking  draw  biggish  audiences  from  the 
military  class  whenever  contests  are  announced. 
But  the  paramount  sport  of  the  masses  is  horse- 
racing, pure  and  simple.  The  course  is  on  the 
plains  a few  miles  out  of  town,  close  to  a suburb 
given  over  to  cotton-mills,  where  nearly  as  many 
spindles  fly  as  at  Fall  River.  All  Bombay  seems 
to  be  at  the  races,  irrespective  of  religious  or  so- 
cial distinctions— everyone  present  loves  the 

134 


BOMBAY  RAILWAY  STATION 


The  Parsee 


horse  and  appears  possessed  of  a goodly  supply  of 
rupees  with  which  to  back  his  selections. 

The  Jockey  Club  has  its  own  lawn  and  private 
enclosure  on  the  stand,  and  there  is  a box  for  the 
governor  and  anybody  coming  from  Government 
House.  The  grand-stand  bears  a minor  impor- 
tance to  the  betting  ring,  for  the  latter  holds  a 
surging,  throbbing  medley  of  humanity— society 
folk  from  India’s  innermost  official  set,  sleek  Par- 
sees  wearing  gold  rimmed  eye-glasses,  rajahs  from 
all  parts,  wealthy  merchants  and  bankers,  fez- 
wearing  Mohammedans  from  the  world  of  Islam, 
men  from  the  Persian  Gulf  in  astrachan  head- 
gear,  Pathans  from  beyond  the  Himalayas,  Sikhs 
from  the  Punjab— as  can  be  gathered  in  great 
India,  the  museum  of  the  human  race. 

Three  score  book-makers  howl  their  bargains  in 
raucous  tones,  and  a whirlwind  of  rupee  paper 
passes  to  the  strong  boxes.  The  crowd  is  backing 
the  favorites.  Even  the  Arab  horse  dealers  from 
the  Bhendi  bazaar,  manly  fellows  in  the  garb  of 
desert  sheikhs,  whose  pockets  bulge  with  rolls  of 
notes,  comprehend  the  book-makers’  jargon  of 
English  that  might  be  incomprehensible  to  an  Ox- 
ford don.  A prince  who  is  heir  to  the  rulership 
of  one  of  the  greatest  states  in  India  has  no  scru- 
ples against  inviting  an  expression  of  opinion  as 
to  so-and-so’s  bay  filly  of  a native  sportsman 
with  beard  dyed  red  with  henna,  in  keeping  with 
the  fashion  of  his  kind.  Escorted  ladies  of  posi- 
tion, and  unescorted  women  in  pairs  from  Grant 
Road,  are  present  before  the  betting  booths. 

137 


East  of  Suez 


Fair  Parsee  ladies,  wearing  clinging  robes  of  deli- 
cate shades,  wait  patiently  while  their  swains 
place  their  money  on  the  impending  event. 

A bell  rings  loudly— the  horses  are  at  the  post. 
The  mob  rushes  from  the  betting  ring  to  the  lawn ; 
only  few  take  the  trouble  to  climb  to  their  seats. 
It  is  a quick  race.  The  crowd  of  standees  in  the 
inner  field  see  it  best,  and  down  this  mighty  non- 
descript body  is  echoed  the  cry  “Kedge  Anchor!” 
Sure  enough,  ‘ ‘ Kedge  Anchor,  ’ ’ an  unknown  from 
Australia,  ridden  by  a jockey  of  obscure  past, 
wins  the  great  race.  Three  favorites  are  inglo- 
riously  beaten.  Up  go  the  numbers.  All  is  over  in 
less  than  two  minutes— and  the  crowd  goes  pell- 
mell  back  to  the  book-makers’  enclosure,  hoping 
for  better  luck  over  the  next  race  on  the  card.  If 
rupees  were  dollars,  the  financial  aspect  of  a Bom- 
bay racing  day  would  be  important. 

Kipling  wrote  true  when  he  called  Bombay  “In- 
dia’s Queen  City.”  It  lacks  the  depressing  influen- 
ces of  Calcutta,  as  well  as  the  odors.  Indeed,  it  is 
one  of  the  handsomest  cities  of  the  whole  British 
Empire,  and  has  more  notable  buildings  than  Man- 
chester or  Edinburgh.  True,  its  stately  piles  blend 
the  Gothic  and  Indian  schools  of  architecture,  but 
otherwise  there  is  nothing  Eastern  about  Bombay 
—save  its  people.  A man  awakening  from  long 
slumber  on  a ship  anchored  off  the  Apollo  Bunder 
would  willingly  swear  he  beheld  a European  town. 
Eight  tenths  of  India’s  visitors  arrive  and  depart 
from  Bombay. 

The  opening  of  the  Suez  Canal  made  certain  the 

138 


The  Parsee 


importance  of  Bombay  as  a trade  center.  It  is 
now  the  largest  cotton  port  in  the  world  next  to 
New  Orleans,  and  if  plague  and  smallpox  might 
be  controlled  for  five  years  it  would  have  a popu- 
lation of  a million.  Bombay  is  a comparatively 
modern  city,  as  cities  count  in  immemorial  India. 
England  secured  Bombay  in  1661,  not  by  con- 
quest, but  as  a portion  of  the  marriage  dowry  of 
Catharine  of  Braganza  of  Portugal,  when  she  be- 
came the  queen  of  Charles  II. 

The  world’s  most  artistic  railway  station— not 
the  largest,  nor  costliest— is  in  Bombay,  and  the 
best  marble  statue  in  existence  of  Queen  Victoria 
was  presented  to  the  Bombay  municipality  by  His 
Highness  the  Gaekwar  of  Baroda.  Another  nota- 
ble gift  is  the  bronze  statue  of  Edward  VII,  dona- 
ted by  Sir  Albert  Sassoon,  son  of  a public-spirited 
banker  from  Baghdad,  who  took  up  his  residence 
in  Bombay.  A newcomer  among  the  city’s  office 
buildings  is  “Roosevelt  House,”  advantageously 
situated  near  the  Apollo  Bunder. 

The  eyes  of  the  person  recently  arrived  from 
Europe  or  America  behold  many  strange  and 
amusing  sights  in  the  streets  of  Bombay,  and  for 
days  your  local  guide  and  the  obliging  porter  at 
the  hotel  is  kept  busy  the  livelong  day  answering 
questions.  The  native  policeman  is  a human  in- 
stitution who  explains  himself.  It  is  averred  that 
he  is  loyal  and  efficient,  but  with  his  calf  less  legs 
bared  to  the  knee  and  feet  shod  in  sandals,  he 
looks  a queer  cousin  of  Fifth  Avenue’s  “Finest’ 
and  of  the  “Bobby”  of  London.  A person  unac 

139 


7 


East  of  Suez 


customed  to  the  habits  of  subject  races  gets  the 
idea  that  the  Bombay  constable’s  first  duty  is  the 
touching  of  his  cap  to  white  men,  all  and  sundry ; 
but  it  is  said  to  his  credit  that  in  a street  brawl  or 
a water  front  quarrel  among  drunken  lascars  he 
fights  like  a wildcat.  He  is  extremely  proud  of 
his  truncheon,  for  it  is  a badge  of  office  tremen- 
dously respected  in  the  city’s  labyrinths  where  In- 
dia’s heterogeneous  peoples  dwell  a dozen  or  more 
in  a room.  During  the  wet  monsoon  the  police- 
man of  Bombay  carries  an  umbrella  supplied  by 
the  municipality,  which  heightens  his  comical  as- 
pect—but  it  keeps  him  dry. 

The  markings  and  badges  of  caste  observed  in 
Bombay  streets  lead  you  to  a constant  interroga- 
tion of  your  sources  of  information.  At  the  out- 
set you  determine  to  obtain  an  understanding  of 
the  institution  of  Indian  caste,  but  a fortnight 
after  your  arrival  in  Bombay  you  conclude  that 
the  task  is  too  great  for  anybody  having  other 
things  to  do,  and  give  it  up  in  despair.  A few 
facts  connected  with  this  supreme  and  dominating 
characteristic  take  root  in  your  memory,  however, 
and  you  have  learned  that  the  customs  and  rites  of 
caste  could  not  be  strengthened  even  by  legal  en- 
actments, or  by  the  massed  strength  of  all  the 
armies  on  earth.  The  word  is  derived  from  the 
Latin  word  castus,  implying  purity  of  blood,  and 
whose  essential  principle  is  marriage.  India’s 
population  groups  forty-seven  nationalities,  divid- 
ed into  2,378  recognized  castes  and  tribes.  Acci- 
dent of  birth  determines  irrevocably  a native’s  so- 

140 


BOMBAY  POLICEMAN 


The  Parsee 


cial  and  domestic  relationship,  prescribing  even 
what  he  may  eat  and  drink  throughout  life,  how 
he  must  dress,  and  whom  he  may  marry.  There 
are  four  fundamental  divisions  of  caste— the 
priestly  or  Brahmin  (which  has  close  upon  fifteen 
million  devotees),  the  warrior,  the  trading,  and 
the  laboring;  and  these  have  interminable  subdi- 
visions. Below  the  laboring  caste  there  is  a sub- 
stratum which  is  termed  pariah  or  outcast,  and 
these  degraded  specimens  of  humanity  are  not 
better  than  animated  machines  performing  the 
functions  of  public  scavengers. 

Throughout  India  caste  is  hereditary.  The  son 
of  a priest  becomes  a priest,  a warrior’s  son  be- 
comes a soldier,  and  a carpenter’s  boy  a carpenter, 
and  so  on.  For  a father  to  start  a son  in  any  call- 
ing but  his  own,  or  a vocation  that  is  similar, 
would  be  “against  his  caste.”  Caste  is  social  as 
well  as  religious,  and  includes  the  occupation  as 
well  as  the  creed.  For  a Hindu  to  rise  from  his 
inherited  caste  is  next  to  impossible,  and  this 
tends  to  make  the  Hindus  an  ambitionless  race. 
The  infusion  of  new  blood  is  likewise  not  tolera- 
ted, and  in  India  “caste”  and  “custom”  are  per- 
fect synonyms— and  each  a national  curse. 

A major  part  of  the  people  of  India  are  agricul- 
turists, men  and  women  who  are  dependent  upon 
what  they  can  wrest  from  the  soil  for  their  exist- 
ence. Their  plough,  an  heirloom  from  remote  an- 
tiquity, merely  scratches  the  earth.  The  use  of 
superior  implements  would  result  in  superior  til- 
lage and  augmented  crops ; but  it  would  be  as  sim- 

143 


East  of  Suez 


pie  to  induce  the  peasant  to  change  his  religion  as 
to  get  him  to  forsake  the  plough  used  by  his  ances- 
tors. The  implements  of  daily  life  mostly  belong 
to  the  barbarous  ages.  Attempt  to  introduce  any 
other  and  you  are  rebuked  by  the  reply:  “It  is 
not  the  custom;  my  father  used  this  article,  and 
therefore  it  is  my  duty  to  use  it.  Would  you  have 
me  set  myself  up  for  a wiser  person  than  my  re- 
vered parent!”  The  toiling  masses,  consequently, 
are  poor— and  seem  destined  to  remain  poor  until 
the  close  of  the  chapter. 

I heard  of  a contractor  engaged  in  building  a 
railway  who  objected  to  the  physical  toil  and 
slowness  of  having  a bank  of  earth  removed  by 
baskets  on  the  heads  of  coolies.  So  he  invested  in 
a number  of  wheelbarrows  and  explained  their 
use  to  the  natives,  and  went  back  to  his  Bombay 
office  flattering  himself  that  he  was  a reformer. 
The  next  week  when  he  visited  the  scene  of  opera- 
tions he  found  the  barrows  in  use,  but  the  coolies 
were  filling  them  with  dirt  and  carrying  them  up 
the  bank  on  their  heads  as  they  had  always  car- 
ried their  baskets.  The  coolie  of  Hind  is  not  to  be 
beguiled  by  any  demonstration  intended  to  lighten 
his  task,  for  he  is  crusted  with  conservatism  and 
prejudice. 

In  Bombay  I engaged  a man-servant  to  accom- 
pany me  on  a trip  to  the  Punjab.  It  being  a win- 
ter of  unusual  severity,  and  the  journey  involving 
much  night  travel,  the  agent  from  whom  I hired 
the  servant  advised  me  that  it  would  be  a benefi- 
cial as  well  as  a humane  act  were  I to  give  the  man 

144 


The  Parsec 


ten  rupees  with  which  to  procure  an  “ outfit” 
suitable  for  one  going  to  the  north.  “It  ’s  some- 
times done,  but  not  often  enough  to  make  it  a 
custom,”  explained  the  agent;  “but  it  would  be 
the  right  thing— and  because  voluntary,  the  poor 
fellow  should  serve  you  all  the  better  for  your 
generosity.  Give  him  but  ten  rupees,  and  see  that 
he  spends  it  all  for  heavy  undergarments  and  ser- 
viceable shoes.” 

Experiencing  some  haziness  as  to  how  any  tittle 
of  reputation  for  generosity  was  going  to  be 
reared  on  an  expenditure  aggregating  just  $3.20 
in  American  money,  I communicated  my  deter- 
mination to  the  man  who  perforce  was  to  be  my 
constant  companion  for  a month,  and  who  had  it  in 
his  power  to  make  me  love  or  hate  the  country.  As 
was  to  be  expected,  I was  many  kinds  of  a sahib 
for  my  munificent  benefaction,  and  Torab  Jan  sa- 
laamed almost  to  the  floor  when  promising  to  re- 
turn from  the  bazaars  in  good  time  to  strap  my 
mattress  and  pack  my  trunk  in  readiness  to  go  to 
the  station  directly  dinner  was  over. 

Hours  later,  but  in  time  to  throw  my  clothes 
and  books  into  trunk  and  bags,  Torab  stalked 
into  the  apartment,  and  close  upon  his  heels  was 
another  native  carrying  a not  overlarge  parcel. 
Torab  was  frank  in  stating  that  he  had  purchased 
precisely  what  he  needed,  and  proffered  a snip  of 
paper  covered  with  characters  in  Hindustani  to 
prove  he  had  expended  precisely  ten  rupees,  which 
made  it  necessary  to  have  another  benefaction- 
two  annas  this  time. 


145 


East  of  Suez 

“What  are  the  two  annas  for,  and  who  is  this 
man?”  I asked. 

“He  ’s  the  coolie  bearing  my  parcel  from  the 
bazaar,  master,  ’ ’ was  the  response ; ‘ ‘ you  must 
know  that  my  caste  makes  it  impossible  for  me 
to  carry  parcels.” 

‘ ‘ See  here,  you  drooling  idiot ; what  do  you  think 
I have  hired  you  for?  Why,  you  ’ve  got  to  carry 
parcels,  lots  of  them,  and  big  ones  at  that;  and 
you  ’ll  have  to  carry  that  bed  there  and  my  trunk 
half  over  India,  likely  as  not.  Don’t  talk  to  me 
about  caste.” 

“Pray,  master,  don’t  be  angry  with  me.  I 
know  I ’m  to  carry  your  things— that  ’s  what  I ’m 
for.  I forgot  to  explain  that  my  caste  forbids 
only  the  carrying  of  my  own  parcels,”  the  poor 
fellow  whined. 

And  so  it  was.  In  places  where  there  were  no 
carriages  Torab  seemed  to  delight  in  loading  him- 
self down  with  my  paraphernalia,  but  his  be- 
longings had  always  to  be  carried  religiously  by  a 
native  of  a breed  earning  its  living  by  acting  as 
human  drays. 


146 


HIS  HIGHNESS  THE  MAHARAJAH  OF  JEYPORE 


CHAPTER  VII 


THE  VICARIOUS  MAHARAJAH  OP  JEYPORE 

THOUSANDS  of  travelers  make  the  pilgrim- 
age to  India,  a land  hoary  with  age,  and 
when  weary  of  overwrought  temples  and  tombs, 
when  arid  plains  and  malodorous  towns  lose 
their  power  to  interest,  they  journey  north  to  Raj- 
putana  to  revel  in  Jeypore,  the  unique— at  least, 
lovers  of  Kipling  do.  And  the  effect  on  jaded 
senses  is  like  a cooling  draught  after  a parching 
thirst.  Kipling  called  Jeypore  “A  pink  city,  to 
see  and  puzzle  over.”  It  surely  is  pink,  all  of  it 
that  is  not  sky-blue,  and  for  various  reasons  it  is 
more  satisfying  than  any  other  town  in  India. 

For  a land  where  time  is  calculated  by  century 
units,  Jeypore  is  almost  as  recent  as  a “boom” 
city  on  an  American  prairie.  As  a fact,  its  first 
building  was  reared  only  a hundred  and  seventy- 
eight  years  ago ; and  this  modernity  explains  thor- 
oughfares of  remarkable  breadth  that  cross  each 
other  at  right  angles.  Generations  the  senior  of 
Jeypore,  New  York  is  no  better  exponent  of  the 
checker-board  idea.  Jeypore  is  but  the  setting  of 
a scene  harking  back  to  medieval  days,  however, 
and  is  the  capital  of  an  independent  state  greater 

H9 


East  of  Suez 


in  area  than  Belgium,  and  from  its  palace  and  ju- 
dicial chambers  nearly  three  million  souls  are 
governed.  Nowhere  in  India,  outside  the  great 
Rajputana  province,  is  it  possible  to  view  a pic- 
ture of  happy  and  contented  life,  and  in  the  city  of 
Jeypore  this  is  seen  in  its  perfection. 

This  ornate  capital  on  the  plains,  hemmed  in  by 
fortress-crowned  hills,  is  a veritable  stronghold 
of  feudal  barons  and  armed  retainers,  of  hermits 
and  monasteries,  and  is  dotted  with  palaces  and 
public  buildings  pertaining  to  the  Maharajah’s 
rule.  Many  of  the  structures  are  new  enough  to 
suggest  what  Americans  love  to  call  “modern  con- 
veniences.” The  principal  streets  are  broader 
than  Broadway,  as  well  paved,  and  illuminated  by 
gas  systematically  enough  installed  to  indicate  the 
presence  behind  the  scenes  of  European  engi- 
neers. Strange  to  say,  Jeypore  is  an  Indian  city 
wherein  the  lordly  Briton  in  khaki  is  never  seen: 
if  the  English  functionary  be  here,  his  master  is 
none  other  than  the  Maharajah.  Through  its 
streets  surge  a people  almost  childish  in  their  hap- 
piness, some  in  ekkas  drawn  by  matched  pairs  of 
bullocks,  others  mounted  high  on  the  backs  of  trot- 
ting camels,  while  bands  of  chattering  Rajputs  on 
foot  are  omnipresent— every  grouping  reminds  of 
something  witnessed  on  the  stage,  and  the  tout  en- 
semble might  be  the  great  scene  of  a realistic 
opera  intended  to  glorify  the  people  and  the  insti- 
tutions of  India. 

Feminine  adornment  is  carried  in  Jeypore  to  its 
extreme.  The  bright-hued  skirts  of  the  women 

150 


The  Vicarious  Maharajah  of  Jeypore 

are  flare-fashioned  and  “fuller,”  in  dressmakers’ 
parlance,  than  anything  dared  by  Fay  Templeton. 
But  the  Jeypore  beauty’s  real  passion  is  for  gold 
and  silver  jewelry,  and  she  carries  this  to  a degree 
unrivaled  by  the  women  of  any  other  section  of 
India.  It  is  not  trifling  with  fact  to  say  that  the 
average  Rajput  woman  wears  from  eight  to  ten 
pounds  in  silver  on  ankles  and  toes,  and  bracelets 
enough  to  sheath  arms  from  wrist  to  elbow. 
Every  feminine  Jeypore  nose  bears  some  metal 
ornamentation— gold  studs  through  the  nostrils, 
and  generally  a hoop  of  gold  depending  a full  inch 
below  the  point  of  the  chin.  Their  ears  are  de- 
formed by  the  wealth  of  metal  hanging  from  lobe 
or  strung  on  the  upper  rim  of  that  organ.  It  can 
be  said  of  Jeypore ’s  fair  sex  that  they  are  bimet- 
allists in  the  strictest  sense.  The  argument  of  the 
savings-bank  has  probably  never  been  brought  to 
their  attention,  for  when  one  of  them  has  a little 
money  ahead  she  purchases  a silver  ornament  for 
her  person ; and  if  a windfall  come  to  her  by  leg- 
acy or  otherwise,  she  buys  something  of  gold, 
most  likely  a necklace  of  barbaric  design.  When 
one  of  these  women  goes  to  the  market-place  or 
the  public  well,  she  wears  everything  of  value  she 
possesses,  and  for  the  best  of  reasons  her  home  is 
never  pilfered. 

Rajput  men  and  women  look  a visitor  in  the 
face,  and  by  their  smiling  countenances  seem  to 
welcome  you  to  their  country.  They  lack  the 
broken-spirited  look  and  sullen  servility  of  Indian 
peoples  overlorded  by  Thomas  Atkins.  In  Jey- 

151 


East  of  Suez 


pore  there  are  grandees  and  warriors,  painted 
dogs,  hunting  leopards,  bedecked  horses,  and  hulk- 
ing elephants  in  every  street  picture— and  these 
pictures  change  with  the  facility  of  groupings  of 
the  kaleidoscope. 

The  open-air  shops  of  the  metal  workers  and 
enamelers,  and  of  the  dyers,  whose  favorite  colors 
are  magenta  and  yellow,  are  interesting.  There, 
on  the  left,  is  the  imposing  fagade  of  the  Palace  of 
the  Winds,  extolled  by  Sir  Edwin  Arnold  as  “a 
vision  of  daring  and  dainty  loveliness,”  but  which 
in  reality  is  scarcely  more  than  a mask  of  stucco 
erected  to  make  a show  from  the  street.  The  Ma- 
harajah’s palace  and  grounds  cover  a seventh  of 
the  area  of  this  finest  of  modern  Hindu  cities.  A 
stone’s  throw  from  the  palace  portal  is  a temple 
wherein  Jeypore  women  beseech  the  image  of 
Siva  to  bless  them  with  children:  and  elsewhere 
are  a Gate  of  Rubies,  and  a Temple  of  the  Sun.  At 
scores  of  wayside  shops  tiny  idols  of  the  Hindu 
hierarchy,  and  silver  bracelets  and  gewgaws,  are 
sold  to  people  almost  infantile  in  their  cheerful- 
ness. Wedding  processions  pass  and  repass  with 
a frequency  proving  an  active  matrimonial  mar- 
ket, each  led  by  joyous  singers  and  drum-beaters. 

An  entrancing  place  is  this  seat  of  His  High- 
ness of  Jeypore,  and  compensating  for  the  tedious 
railway  journey  from  Delhi  landing  one  at  the 
city’s  gates  in  the  inky  darkness  of  4:30  in  the 
morning.  At  his  hotel  a visitor  learns  that  a for- 
mal request  must  be  made  for  permission  to  in- 
spect the  Maharajah’s  palace  and  stables,  and  to 

152 


MATCHED  PAIR  OP  BULLOCKS,  .TEYPORE 


The  Vicarious  Maharajah  of  Jeypore 

go  to  the  abandoned  capital  of  the  state,  Ambir, 
five  miles  away.  You  make  application  through 
a deputy,  usually  the  man-servant  traveling  with 
you,  and  an  hour  later  comes  formal  notification 
that  His  Highness  welcomes  you  to  his  capital, 
and  that  a state  carriage  will  be  sent  for  your  use, 
as  well  as  a state  elephant  to  carry  you  up  the 
hills  to  Ambir.  This  outburst  of  hospitality  comes 
with  a surprise  and  force  that  almost  sweeps  one 
off  his  feet,  and  you  have  instant  misgivings  for 
having  troubled  the  august  potentate  at  such  an 
unreasonable  morning  hour.  Then  your  brain  al- 
most reels  as  you  recall  books  that  had  dwelt  upon 
the  limitless  hospitality  of  Eastern  princes,  and 
you  hope  that  His  Highness  will  not  insist  upon 
your  dining  with  him— with  your  evening  dress 
and  high  hat  awaiting  you  at  a Bombay  hotel  a 
command  to  the  palace  would,  to  say  the  least,  be 
awkward. 

But  you  are  spared  this  inconvenience,  probably 
because  the  Maharajah  is  as  familiar  with  de- 
puted affairs  as  you  are.  Two  gaudy  chaprassis 
who  have  brought  the  desired  permits  are  His 
Highness’s  deputies,  and  from  them  you  learn 
that  their  master  has  been  for  a fortnight  at  Cal- 
cutta, but  is  expected  to  return  in  a day  or  two. 
They  come  into  your  room  and  assure  you  in  fair 
English  that  they  are  detailed  for  your  use  as 
long  as  you  honor  Jeypore  with  your  benevolent 
presence.  They  wear  curious  swords  high  under 
the  left  arm,  and  beautifully  inlaid  shields  are 
belted  to  their  right  arms— these  trappings  are 

155 


East  of  Suez 


badges  of  office,  but  you  wonder  if  they  would  sell 
them  to  be  taken  to  America  to  become  conspicu- 
ous adornments  of  somebody’s  cosy  corner. 

A person  with  a fondness  for  simplicity,  or  pos- 
sessing scruples  against  kingly  institutions,  may 
escape  the  state  carriage  by  despatching  a firm 
and  prompt  declination  of  the  honor.  But  the 
chaprassis  remain;  and  the  elephant,  already 
trudging  to  the  base  of  the  Ambir  hills  to  await 
your  coming,  cannot  be  countermanded  or  headed 
off.  In  this  charming  manner  the  great  Mahara- 
jah entertains  daily  the  handful  of  strangers 
within  his  gates— it  is  India’s  remaining  relic  of 
the  hospitality  of  long  ago.  A distinction  inor- 
dinately prized  by  native  princes  is  the  number 
of  guns  prescribed  by  the  Indian  government  as 
their  salutes.  The  Gaekwar  of  Baroda  and  two 
other  feudatory  rulers  are  entitled  to  twenty-one 
guns,  while  the  hereditary  right  of  the 'Maharajah 
of  Jeypore  is  only  seventeen.  But  the  present 
Maharajah,  as  a reward  for  his  enlightened  ad- 
ministration, is  made  happy  by  having  four  ad- 
ditional guns— and  no  king  or  emperor  can  have 
higher  acclaim  from  the  cannon’s  mouth. 

One  cannot  tarry  a day  in  Jeypore  without 
hearing  redundant  testimony  that  His  Highness 
Sir  Sewai  Madho  Singh  is  a fine  man,  devoted  to 
his  people  and  unswervingly  loyal  to  his  religion. 
His  visitors  are  often  lords  and  ladies  of  England, 
who  find  his  hospitality  as  interesting  as  it  is 
boundless.  To  the  tips  of  his  fingers  he  is  a Hindu 
devotee  with  all  that  the  term  can  mean.  When  he 

156 


STREET  SCENE,  JEYPORE,  SHOWING  PALACE  OF  THE  WINDS 


The  Vicarious  Maharajah  of  jeypore 

attended  the  coronation  of  Edward  VII,  in  London, 
the  preparations  for  his  sea- voyage  were  unprece- 
dented in  orthodoxy.  An  ocean  liner  was  spe- 
cially chartered  for  him  and  his  suite;  in  all  one 
hundred  and  twenty-five  people  formed  the  escort. 
Six  special  kitchens  were  fitted  up  on  the  ship,  in- 
cluding one  to  prepare  food  exclusively  for  His 
Highness.  There  was,  as  well,  a special  temple, 
paved  with  marble,  for  the  family  idol,  before 
which  the  Maharajah  prostrated  himself  many 
times  daily.  Drinking  water  from  the  sacred 
Ganges,  and  every  article  of  food— enough  to  sus- 
tain the  entire  party  for  six  months— were  carried 
from  India.  So  rigidly  was  the  orthodoxy  ob- 
served that  even  the  sand  for  cleaning  cooking- 
utensils  was  placed  on  board  at  Bombay;  and 
washermen,  carpenters,  blacksmiths,  and  others 
accompanied  the  party,  that  there  be  no  necessity 
for  purchasing  anything  in  England,  or  having 
work  done  by  persons  not  of  the  Hindu  faith. 
That  the  august  traveler’s  caste  be  untainted,  ex- 
tra tanks  of  water  from  Benares  were  subse- 
quently sent  to  England  by  frequent  steamers. 

The  Maharajah  maintains  a military  force  of 
nearly  4,000  cavalry  and  16,000  infantrymen.  Be- 
sides these  soldiers,  his  retainers  number  thou- 
sands, and  their  right  to  wear  a sword  is  a coveted 
distinction  throughout  Jeypore  state. 

The  palace  stables  contain  three  hundred  horses, 
but  the  equipages  and  trappings  are  more  in- 
teresting than  the  animals.  There  are  some  su- 
perb Arab  steeds,  however.  A visitor  noting  the 

159 


East  of  Suez 


army  of  grooms  wonders  that  the  management  is 
not  better  systematized;  but  a word  from  your 
traveling  companion,  who  knows  the  ways  of  ma- 
harajahs, is  to  the  effect  that  an  Indian  nabob  is 
forced  by  custom  to  support  thousands  whether 
there  be  work  for  them  or  not.  His  Highness’s 
stables  and  carriage-houses  somehow  suggest  a 
circus  in  winter  quarters.  The  fact  is  that  Jey- 
pore’s  ruler  takes  little  interest  in  horseflesh  and 
carriagemakers’  creations.  His  preference  is  for 
elephants— animals  befitting  a dynasty  descended 
from  the  sun  and  moon. 

“Will  the  sahibs  visit  the  elephant  stable?” 
The  sahibs  communicate  their  desire  to  do  so. 
Mahouts  with  pikestaffs  lead  the  way,  and  a myr- 
iad of  hangers-on  swarm  in  the  train  of  the  visi- 
tors. The  accoutrements  seen  en  route  to  the  sta- 
ble are  interesting,  surely,  especially  the  howdahs. 
Some  of  these  are  of  silver.  One  was  used  by 
the  Prince  of  Wales;  another  was  fashioned  for 
the  Maharajah’s  use  at  the  Delhi  durbar,  and  a 
gorgeous  one  is  reserved  for  the  viceroy  whenever 
that  mighty  personage  pays  a state  visit  to  Jey- 
pore.  A half-dozen  howdahs  are  specially  fitted 
for  the  Maharajah’s  favorite  sport,  tiger-hunting. 
Some  of  the  howdah  cloths  represent  a fortune  in 
gold  and  silver  bullion,  while  a few  are  saved  from 
tawdriness  by  the  skill  of  the  embroiderer  in  silk. 

The  elephants  are  now  trumpeting  impatiently 
for  inspection.  Their  compound  is  a series  of 
roofless  walled  enclosures,  and  a visitor  notes 
with  grateful  appreciation  the  strength  of  the 

160 


COURT  DANCERS  AND  MUSICIANS,  JEYPORE 


The  Vicarious  Maharajah  of  Jeypore 

chains  anchoring  the  beasts  to  mother  earth.  A 
leviathan  is  straining  at  his  tether  in  a mad  effort 
to  reach  a vagabond  who  is  tantalizing  him  with  a 
pike,  and  your  guide— one  of  the  official  messen- 
gers with  sword  and  shield— says:  “He  no  like 
Hindu  people;  last  week  he  kill  two.”  Beasts  as 
docile  as  kittens  take  nuts  from  your  hand,  and 
evince  disappointment  when  more  are  not  forth- 
coming. Five  magnificent  tuskers,  that  promptly 
obey  their  keeper’s  command,  are  used  by  His 
Highness  for  tiger-hunting;  and  a bevy  of  com- 
plaisant elephants,  quartered  in  a single  stable, 
have  grown  old  in  carrying  tourists  up  the  Ambir 
hills,  it  is  explained. 

From  the  elephant  stables  the  chaprassis  scurry 
the  visitors  through  fragrant  gardens  and  under 
bizarre  arches  to  the  crocodile  department,  where 
a score  of  saurians  are  pastured  in  an  enclosure 
that  is  half  swamp  and  half  lake  and  is  acres  in  ex- 
tent. Visitors  are  placed  at  the  top  of  a staircase  of 
masonry  descending  to  the  water,  while  two  wild- 
eyed Hindus  seek  to  rouse  the  crocodiles  from 
their  siesta  on  a grassy  islet  a hundred  yards 
away  by  a series  of  shrieks  that  would  disgust  self- 
respecting  animals  and  reptiles.  In  a leisurely 
manner  the  crocodiles  seem  to  recognize  the  signal 
to  mean  that  a new  lot  of  tourists  desire  to  see 
them  fed.  It  requires  a good  quarter  of  an  hour 
for  the  Indians  to  lure  them  to  the  foot  of  the 
staircase,  and  from  the  first  it  is  plain  that  the 
crocodiles  view  with  indifference  your  visit  to  Jey- 
pore. The  lower  step  is  finally  fringed  with 

163 


East  of  Suez 


opened  mouths  which  in  a moment  engulf  a mass 
of  slaughter-house  refuse  almost  thrust  down 
their  throats  by  the  wild-eyed  showmen,  whom 
you  reward  with  a shower  of  rupees  which  they 
believe  marks  your  appreciation  of  their  efforts. 

As  you  are  whisked  through  the  palace  yard,  on 
the  way  to  the  carriage,  you  espy  through  an  open 
door  a splendid  room  fitted  with  paraphernalia 
not  associated  with  medieval  pastimes.  It  is  the 
Maharajah’s  billiard-room,  sumptuously  fur- 
nished, and  filled  with  tables  of  the  latest  English 
make. 

Probably  because  they  are  proud  of  the  fact 
that  a former  ruler  of  Jeypore  was  a generous  pa- 
tron of  science,  the  chaprassis  pilot  you  to  the 
park  given  over  to  the  apparatus  of  the  celebra- 
ted Hindu  astronomer  and  mathematician,  Jai 
Singh.  It  contains  dials,  azimuth  masonry,  alti- 
tude pillars,  astrolabe,  and  a double  mural  quad- 
rant of  enormous  size  and  height,  on  which  the 
gradations  have  been  marked.  In  a way  this  ex- 
hibit of  obsolete  paraphernalia  refutes  the  idea 
that  Jeypore ’s  maharajahs  have  lived  solely  for 
the  gratification  of  the  senses  by  amusements.  A 
few  minutes  later  you  are  at  the  public  tiger-cages, 
where  a dozen  bona  fide  “man-eaters”  are  lazily 
stretched  in  shaded  corners  of  their  prison  cages. 
Thirty  odd  years  ago  the  present  King  of  Eng- 
land killed  his  first  tiger  near  Jeypore,  and  the  an- 
imal ever  since  has  played  an  important  part  in 
the  city’s  pleasures.  One  inmate  of  the  cages  has 
an  authenticated  record  of  ten  Indians  killed,  be- 

164 


The  Vicarious  Maharajah  of  jeypore 

fore  His  Higlmess’s  retainers  lured  him  into  am- 
bush and  made  him  a prisoner.  “Two  days  from 
now,”  explains  one  of  the  men  carrying  sword 
and  shield,  “that  tiger  there, ’’—indicating  a sul- 
len beast,— “is  to  fight  a wild  elephant  for  the  Ma- 
harajah’s entertainment.  Would  the  sahibs  care 
to  witness  the  combat?”  The  visitors  promptly 
regret  that  they  have  unbreakable  engagements  in 
another  part  of  India.  Cheetahs  are  then  led 
forth  for  admiration.  Zoos  and  menageries  know 
them  as  leopards— in  India  they  are  cheetahs,  and 
are  trained  to  course  deer  and  antelope.  A hunts- 
man releases  a cheetah,  whose  gaze  has  been  di- 
rected to  a fleeing  deer  on  the  plain,  and  in  a few 
minutes  the  deer  is  a captive. 

So  much  for  the  diversions  of  Jeypore ’s  auto- 
crat. 

A distinct  touch  of  beauty  is  imparted  to  his 
capital  by  the  peacocks  of  imperial  strut  and  plu- 
mage. They  are  everywhere  — on  the  crenelated 
city  wall,  in  the  hurly-burly  of  the  streets  and  ba- 
zaars, even  on  the  steps  leading  to  temples  and 
mosques.  The  peacock  is  sacred  to  Jeypore;  it 
crowns  in  miniature  the  street  lamps,  and  is  sculp- 
tured in  hundreds  of  places.  Chattering  parrots 
by  the  roadside  may  arrest  attention,  but  are  for- 
gotten in  a moment— a strutting  peacock  is  beauti- 
ful enough  to  place  the  parrot  family  in  eclipse. 
When  blue-rock  pigeons  descend  by  thousands  in 
the  market-place  to  profit  by  an  over-turned  sack 
of  grain,  visitors  marvel  at  their  irridescent  necks 
and  breasts— but  a beauteous  peacock  appearing 

8 l65 


East  of  Suez 

on  the  scene  attracts  an  admiration  amounting  to 
monopoly. 

But  the  appointment  with  the  state  elephant— 
what  of  that? 

Surely,  Ambir  must  be  seen.  There  it  was  that 
all  the  ancient  splendor  originated  and  dwelt  for 
centuries,  and  until  a practical  maharajah  de- 
cided that  a mountain  retreat  was  ill-suited  to  the 
needs  of  a capital.  The  possessor  of  this  astute 
mind  moved  himself  and  his  machinery  of  govern- 
ment to  the  plain  below— and  all  his  people  fol- 
lowed. This  explains  why  Ambir  is  now  deserted, 
and  why  a court  steeped  in  medievalism  has  a set- 
ting bristling  with  newness. 

Every  adjunct  of  a fortified  residence  is  there 
in  the  hills.  Miles  of  battlemented  masonry, 
pierced  every  few  feet  for  bowmen,  surrounds  the 
straggling  mass  of  buildings.  Terraces  are  set 
upon  the  mountainside  like  a gigantic  staircase, 
and  fringed  with  railings  of  stone  so  artistically 
wrought  as  to  suggest  the  grill-work  of  the  match- 
less Taj  Mahal.  Great  gray  monkeys  descend 
from  the  mountain  slope  to  feed  from  the  hands  of 
your  guides;  and  they  are  not  of  the  moth-eaten 
variety  seen  in  captivity,  but  are  freeborn  deni- 
zens of  the  forest,  whose  coats  glisten  and  whose 
curly  tails  are  of  unusual  length. 

Some  of  the  apartments  in  the  old  palace  rival 
anything  to  be  seen  at  Lucknow,  Agra  or  Delhi. 
A gem  of  a temple,  adjoining  a public  audience 
hall  of  marvelous  richness  in  finish,  is  dedicated 
to  the  awful  goddess  Kali,  and  each  morning  a 

166 


The  Vicarious  Maharajah  of  Jeypore 

goat  is  sacrificed  to  this  deity,  ever  craving  blood, 
by  Hindu  priests  attached  to  the  Maharajah’s 
court.  This  is  a revolting  blot  on  a series  of  ma- 
jestic buildings  that  unite  to  make  one  of  India’s 
greatest  sights. 

“How  blessed  would  it  be,”  you  meditate,  “if 
the  betel-chewing  priest  might  be  sacrificed  in 
place  of  the  innocent  and  helpless  animal.”  But 
no,  human  sacrifices  are  no  longer  permitted  in 
India ; England  stopped  them  years  ago. 

Oh,  yes;  the  state  elephant.  Well,  it  was  ex- 
tremely useful,  for  it  rescued  four  stalwart  native 
servants,  laden  with  tiffin  basket  and  a dozen  bot- 
tles of  mineral  water,  from  toiling  up  the  hills  on 
foot.  Perched  on  his  back  like  nabobs,  they  prob- 
ably indulged  in  remarks  disparaging  of  their 
masters,  electing  to  walk,  and  mused  maybe  upon 
the  theory  that  now  and  then  man  meets  his 
deserts. 


CHAPTER  VIII 


THE  WORLD’S  MOST  EXQUISITE  BUILDING 

MOGUL  ruler  who  did  things  was  Shah 


Jahan,  and  he  came  of  a race  not  content 
with  ordinary  achievements.  His  grandfather, 
Akbar,  was  probably  the  greatest  personage  ever 
born  in  India.  He  it  was  “whose  saddle  was  his 
throne,  the  canopy  of  which  was  the  vaulted  dome 
of  heaven.’’  Akbar  made  Eastern  history,  made  it 
fast,  blazoning  it  with  proud  records  of  conquest 
and  empire  extension.  Akbar  was  the  grandest 
man  who  ever  ruled  Central  India,  and  it  was  he 
who  developed  the  Mogul  Empire  to  the  loftiest 
importance  it  attained. 

Shah  Jahan  embellished  the  empire  with  noble 
structures,  and  his  impulse  for  building  amounted 
to  mania.  Time  annulled  Akbar ’s  achievements, 
but  those  of  his  grandson  stand  to-day,  and  the 
structures  of  his  era  are  beautiful  enough  to  at- 
tract admirers  from  every  corner  of  the  earth.  A 
famous  critic  once  said  that  Shah  Jahan  built  like 
a giant  and  finished  like  a jeweler.  His  works 
have  made  Agra,  of  all  cities  in  India,  the  place  of 
unrivaled  interest. 

Agra ’s  Taj  Mahal  is  the  most  exquisite  building 


168 


THE  TAJ  MAHAL,  AGRA 


The  World’s  Most  Exquisite  Building 

ever  erected  by  the  hands  of  man,  and  is  a ro- 
mance as  deftly  wrought  in  marble  as  any  writer 
ever  fashioned  in  words.  It  marks  a great  man’s 
love  for  a woman— Arjamand  Banu  Begum,  his 
wife.  Shah  Jahan  was  a Mohammedan  despot 
who  led  a magnificent  life,  and  had  other  wives ; 
but  in  his  eyes  the  peer  of  her  sex  was  Arjamand. 
When  she  died  in  giving  birth  to  a child,  he  de- 
clared he  would  rear  to  her  memory  a mausoleum 
so  perfect  that  it  wo>uld  make  men  marvel  for  all 
time.  And  this  he  accomplished.  More  poetry 
and  prose  have  been  written  about  the  Taj,  with 
more  allusions  to  it  as  a symbol  of  love,  than  of 
any  other  creation  marking  human  affection— and 
the  secret  probably  lies  in  the  fact  that  all  the 
world  loves  a lover. 

Arjamand  had  many  titles  otf  rank  and  endear- 
ment, but  poets  like  Sir  Edwin  Arnold  preferred 
to  speak  of  her  as  Mumtaz-i-Mahal,  meaning  the 
“Exalted  of  the  Palace,”  when  extolling  the 
charms  of  this  splendid  niece  of  Nur-Mahal,  who 
likewise  had  been  famed  for  beauty  and  charity. 

Shah  Jahan  ruled  from  1628  to  1658,  and  had 
been  on  the  throne  only  two  years  when  death  took 
from  him  his  adored  Arjamand.  Then  came  the 
resolve  to  erect  to  her  memory  a monument  that 
might  measure  his  love  and  grief.  Since  Akbar’s 
time,  the  best  architects,  artists,  and  skilled  work- 
men of  India,  Persia,  and  Arabia  had  been  at- 
tracted to  Agra  and  neighboring  Delhi.  All  were 
summoned  to  Shah  Jahan ’s  court,  and  the  re- 
sources of  his  empire  placed  at  their  disposal.  The 

171 


East  of  Suez 


Taj,  consequently,  was  not  the  creation  of  a single 
master  mind,  but  the  consummation  of  a great  art 
epoch.  Its  construction  was  commenced  four 
years  after  Arjamand’s  demise. 

The  bereft  emperor  had  appointed  a council  of 
great  architects  of  India  to  guide  the  work.  Draw- 
ings of  celebrated  structures  of  the  world,  espe- 
cially those  in  Moslem  lands,  were  studied.  More 
than  one  European  was  attracted  to  the  Mogul 
court,  and  it  is  believed  that  Geronimo  Verroneo, 
who  had  journeyed  from  Italy,  laid  several  plans 
before  Shah  Jahan.  There  are  records  at  Agra 
showing  that  certain  suggestions  of  the  Italian 
were  adopted,  but  it  is  common  belief  that  the  gen- 
eral design  was  the  recommendation  of  a Turk- 
ish or  Persian  architect  named  Ustad  Isa. 

In  keeping  with  an  old  Tartar  custom,  a garden 
was  chosen  as  the  site  of  the  tomb— a garden 
planted  with  flowers  and  fragrant  shrubs,  em- 
blems of  life,  and  solemn  cypresses,  emblems  of 
death  and  eternity.  In  Mogul  days  such  a garden 
was  maintained  as  a pleasure  ground  during  the 
owner’s  lifetime,  and  used  for  his  interment  when 
dead. 

“ And  she  who  loved  her  garden,  lieth  now 
Lapped  in  a garden. 

And  all  this  for  Love  ! ” 

The  laborers  came  from  many  parts  of  the 
world— the  chief  masons  from  Northern  India 
and  Bagdad,  the  dome  builders  from  Asiatic  Tur- 

1?2 


The  World’s  Most  Exquisite  Building 

key,  and  the  mosaic  artists  from  Persia  and  prob- 
ably Italy.  Every  section  of  India  and  Central 
Asia  was  drawn  upon  for  materials.  The  marble, 
spotless  in  purity,  was  brought  from  Jeypore,  300 
miles  away,  on  the  backs  of  elephants  and  camels 
or  by  bullock  carts.  The  red  sandstone  was  con- 
tributed by  Fathpu  Sikrij,  the  jasper  by  the  Pun- 
jab, the  crystal  and  jade  by  China.  The  tur- 
quoises came  from  Tibet  and  the  Red  Sea,  the 
sapphires  and  lapis  lazuli  from  Ceylon,  coral  and 
cornelian  from  Arabia,  onyx  and  amethysts  from 
Persia,  and  the  diamonds  from  Bundelkund. 

It  engaged  the  unceasing  labor  of  20,000  men 
for  seventeen  years  to  complete  the  Taj ; and  like 
that  other  great  tomb,  the  Cheops  Pyramid  in 
Egypt,  it  was  reared  chiefly  by  forced  labor,  un- 
paid and  uncared  for,  and  thereby  produced  great 
suffering  and  mortality.  This  is  the  chief  blemish 
attaching  to  the  project  that  gave  to  art  the  mau- 
soleum overlooking  the  Jumna. 

According  to  native  accounts  the  cost  of  the  Taj 
was  lakhs  of  rupees  having  to-day  a value  of  $20,- 
000,000;  and  local  tradition  affirms  that  not  half 
this  sum  was  ever  paid  by  the  emperor— this  is  a 
blot  upon  the  sincerity  and  strict  uprightness  of 
the  magnificent  grandson  of  Akbar. 

The  Taj  garden  is  perhaps  a half  mile  square, 
and  is  surrounded  by  a strikingly  beautiful  wall 
of  masonry.  It  is  an  orderly  wilderness  of  rich 
vegetations,  to  be  found  only  in  Asia,  and  the  deep 
greens  and  rich  browns  of  the  avenues  of  foliage 
unquestionably  accentuate  the  whiteness  of  the 

173 


East  of  Suez 


Temple  of  Death.  As  the  garden  helps  the  tomb, 
so  the  tomb  gives  expression  to  the  garden. 

The  great  gateway  of  red  sandstone,  whose  roof 
is  adorned  by  Moorish  arches  and  pavilions,  is  in 
itself  one  of  India’s  most  perfect  buildings.  From 
its  summit  a perfect  view  of  the  Taj  is  had,  with 
the  Jumna  flowing  sluggishly  beneath  its  marble 
platform ; and  from  there  the  grounds  are  spread 
before  the  visitor  in  a perfect  panorama.  The 
paved  avenues,  all  leading  to  the  magnificent  pile, 
miles  of  marble  acqueducts  filled  with  ornamental 
fish,  playing  fountains— all  breathe  the  superla- 
tive of  art,  every  fluttering  leaf  whispers  of  the 
East. 

Not  by  its  size  is  Arjamand’s  tomb  command- 
ing, for  its  dimensions  are  very  moderate.  Im- 
agine a plinth  of  flawless  marble,  313  feet  square, 
and  rising  eighteen  feet  from  the  ground— that  is 
the  foundation  of  the  wondrous  structure.  The 
Taj  is  186  feet  square,  with  dome  rising  to  an  ex- 
treme height  of  220  feet ; that  is  all.  At  each  cor- 
ner of  the  plinth  stands  a tapering  minaret  rear- 
ing its  crown  137  feet ; 

“—four  tall  court  ladies 
tending  their  princess.” 

No  building  carries  the  idea  of  personality  fur- 
ther than  the  Taj,  a feminine  personality,  as  it 
should  be,  for  it  contains  no  suggestion  of  the  rug- 
ged grandeur  of  a tomb  for  a great  man.  The  Taj 
is  the  antithesis  of  Akbar’s  mausoleum,  of  the 

174 


ALABASTER  SCREEN  ENCLOSING  ARJAMAND'S  TOMB,  TAJ  MAHAL 


The  World’s  Most  Exquisite  Building 

Parthenon,  of  Napoleon’s  resting-place,  of 
Grant’s  robust  mausoleum  on  the  Hudson.  A sep- 
ulcher fashioned  after  ordinary  architectural  ca- 
nons can  only  be  conventional : the  Taj  is  different 
from  all  other  buildings  in  the  world ; it  is  symbol- 
ical of  womanly  grace  and  purity— is  the  jewel, 
the  ideal  itself;  is  India’s  noble  tribute  to  the 
grace  of  Indian  womanhood,  a tribute  perhaps  to 
the  Venus  de  Milo  of  the  East. 

The  grace  of  the  Taj,  as  do  the  achievements  of 
every  form  of  perfect  art,  rests  in  its  simplicity. 
A spectator  marvels  that  so  much  beauty  can 
come  from  so  little  apparent  effort.  Yet  nothing 
is  wanting,  there  is  nothing  in  excess;  we 
cannot  alter  a single  stone  and  claim  that 
the  result  would  be  better.  And  Oriental  design- 
ers, working  for  an  Eastern  despot,  might  easily 
have  struck  a jarring  note  and  rendered  the  Taj 
garish— the  wonder  is  that  they  did  not.  The  Taj 
consequently  is  the  objective  of  most  travelers 
making  the  pilgrimage  to  India. 

It  is  easier  to  tell  what  the  Taj  is  than  to  spec- 
ulate upon  the  ideals  and  motives  of  its  builders, 
and  it  should  be  a brave  writer  who  attempts  to 
describe  it.  Kipling,  who  saw  the  structure  first 
from  the  window  of  a train  nearing  Agra,  called  it 
“an  opal  tinted  cloud  on  the  horizon”;  and  after 
studying  the  building  at  close  range  he  wrote, 
“Let  those  who  scoff  at  overmuch  enthusiasm  look 
at  the  Taj  and  thenceforward  be  dumb ; . . . each 
must  view  it  for  himself  with  his  own  eyes,  work- 
ing out  his  own  interpretation  of  the  sight.”  An- 

177 


East  of  Suez 


other  great  English  writer  has  said,  “Words  are 
worthless  in  describing  a building  which  is  abso- 
lutely faultless.”  And  it  taxed  the  talents  of  Sir 
Edwin  Arnold,  critic  and  poet,  to  frame  in  lan- 
guage an  adequate  picture  of  Arjamand’s  death 
couch. 

If  a man  possesses  the  sentiment  of  form  and 
proportion,  the  Taj  will  satisfy  him.  The  stately 
portal  seems  to  harmonize  with  the  grandeur  of 
an  Eastern  queen;  and  the  aerial  dome,  higher 
than  its  breadth,  rests  upon  its  base  as  if  possess- 
ing no  weight,  yet  is  of  solid  marble.  Heroic  in 
treatment  are  the  quotations  from  the  Koran 
framing  every  doorway  and  aperture,  wrought  in 
inlay  or  sculptured  in  relief— and  these  modify 
the  pearly  monotony  of  the  marble. 

One  enters  reverently  the  burial-place  of  Shah 
Jahan’s  queen,  whose  cenotaph  is  of  the  whitest 
marble,  placed  in  the  precise  center  of  the  build- 
ing, and  surrounded  by  an  octagonal  screen  of  ala- 
baster that  is  pierced  and  interwoven  like  lace. 
Every  foot  of  the  walls,  every  column  and  panel, 
is  elaborately  embellished  with  flowers,  leaves, 
scrolls,  and  sentences,  and  these  are  inlaid  in  jas- 
per, bloodstone,  jade,  onyx,  and  precious  stones. 
Arjamand’s  tomb  blossoms  with  never-fading 
Persian  flowers  and  Arabic  sentences  extolling 
her  character,  and  is  as  marvelous  in  workman- 
ship as  if  produced  by  Florentine  inlayers  of  the 
present  time.  The  sarcophagus  was  originally  in- 
closed by  a fence  of  gold,  studded  with  gems;  but 
this  was  early  replaced  by  the  screen  of  marble, 
local  history  asserts. 


178 


The  World's  Most  Exquisite  Building 

The  supposition  is  that  one  Austin  de  Bordeaux, 
a French  goldsmith,  who  had  been  summoned  to 
Agra  by  Shah  Jahan  to  construct  the  celebrated 
Peacock  throne,  had  much  to  do  with  the  treat- 
ment of  the  Taj’s  interior.  The  building  origin- 
ally possessed  two  wonderful  silver  doors,  of  his 
designing,  but  these  were  looted  by  Jat  invaders 
in  1764  and  melted  down.  It  is  said  that  eight 
years  were  consumed  by  the  artists  intrusted 
with  the  making  and  beautifying  of  Arjamand’s 
cenotaph;  and  further,  that  the  Koran’s  every 
line  and  every  word  is  reproduced  by  inlay  or  re- 
lief carving  on  the  interior  and  exterior  of  the 
Taj. 

To  the  left  of  Arjamand’s  tomb  is  that  of  her 
lord  and  lover,  its  location  proving  that  it  was 
placed  there  obviously  from  necessity  and  as  an 
afterthought.  It  is  a span  larger  than  his  con- 
sort’s stone,  and  occupies  nearly  all  the  space  al- 
lowed by  the  position  of  the  grilled  inclosure— but 
is  a sentimentally  fitting  intruder  upon  the  general 
design. 

It  is  a curious  bit  of  history  that  Shah  Jahan, 
conscious  of  triumph  as  the  author  of  the  Taj, 
long  contemplated  constructing  a similar  shrine 
on  the  opposite  bank  of  the  Jumna,  wherein  his 
own  body  was  to  be  placed.  It  was  to  be  con- 
structed of  dark-colored  marble,  but  otherwise  to 
be  a counterpart  of  Arjamand’s  tomb.  The 
foundations  were  placed,  and  the  arangements  for 
supplying  labor  and  materials  well  advanced, 
when  a son  of  Jahan— Aurangzeb— who  had  long- 
plotted  for  the  Mogul  throne,  secured  control  of 

179 


East  of  Suez 

the  military  forces,  and  overthrew  his  father’s 
rule. 

Aurangzeb  promptly  adopted  Delhi  as  his  capi- 
tal, leaving  his  parent  to  languish  as  a political 
prisoner  in  the  palace  within  the  fort  of  Agra.  In 
a suite  of  very  small  rooms,  and  attended  by  a de- 
voted daughter,  the  great  Shah  Jahan  there 
dreamed  away  the  last  seven  years  of  his  life— but 
these  apartments  overlooked  the  Taj  Mahal,  two 
miles  away,  let  it  be  known.  The  heartbroken  Ja- 
han outlived  his  splendid  wife  by  thirty-seven 
years. 

In  this  manner  destiny  willed  that  two  great 
personages  forever  lie  side  by  side  in  death;  and 
consequently  the  Taj  is  enriched  as  a temple  of 
sentiment;  but— they  do  not  sleep  within  the  mar- 
ble caskets  the  traveler  beholds.  There  is  a vault 
deep  underneath  the  floor,  and  there,  in  positions 
agreeing  with  the  monuments  above,  are  the  royal 
remains  enclosed  in  unornamented  masonry. 

In  Jahan ’s  plan  for  a somber  reproduction  of 
the  Taj,  a monumental  bridge  was  to  span  the 
Jumna  and  link  the  shrines  of  emperor  and  em- 
press. Instead  of  this  fair  dream,  there  is  now 
only  a flat,  sandcovered  shore,  upon  which  lazy 
tortoises  range  themselves  under  the  warming 
sun,  and  long-legged  water  fowl  indulge  in  peace- 
ful meditation  and  slumber. 

The  curious  acoustics  of  the  Taj  are  observ- 
able to  the  visitor  going  often  to  Arjamand’s 
shrine.  A harsh  voice  is  echoed  harshly  back  and 
ceases  quickly;  but  a woman’s  tones  raised  gently 

l8o 


INLAID  WORK  IN  MAUSOLEUM  OF  ITIMAD-UD-DAULAH,  AGRA 


The  World’s  Most  Exquisite  Building 

in  song  are  echoed  many  times,  diversified  and 
amplified  in  strange  combinations  of  melody. 
Such  a voice  reverberates  from  every  side,  seem- 
ingly ascends,  and  its  force  finally  dies  away  to  si- 
lence like  the  notes  of  a flying  wood-dove  in  a 
forest. 

This  gem  of  Agra  is  worshiped  as  fervently  by 
Hindus  as  by  those  of  the  Moslem  faith,  and  In- 
dian artists  in  a few  years  almost  destroy  their 
eyesight  trying  to  portray  in  miniature  upon  ivory 
the  architectural  perfection  and  delicacy  of  this 
marvel  of  the  world. 

When  invading  hordes  have  swept  Central  In- 
dia, or  alien  garrisons  been  quartered  in  Agra 
fort,  the  Taj  has  always  suffered  mutilation.  The 
Mahrattas  looted  it  of  everything  movable  and 
systematically  wrenched  precious  stones  from 
their  places  in  the  design  ornamenting  the  fabric 
of  the  interior.  After  the  Mutiny  came  the  red- 
coated  soldier,  who  relieved  the  tedium  of  garri- 
son duty  by  appropriating  any  attractive  piece  of 
inlay  overlooked  by  the  Mahrattas— these  pretty 
bits  made  interesting  souvenirs  of  India  for  send- 
ing home  to  the  British  Isles. 

For  twenty  years  the  British  government  has 
been  repairing  this  desecration,  under  guidance  of 
its  viceroys.  The  great  chamber  of  the  Taj  now 
seems  perfect  in  its  embellishment— but  there  are 
no  diamonds,  no  rubies,  and  no  emeralds,  as  of 
old.  Bits  of  colored  glass  fill  their  places. 

But  the  Taj ’s  exterior  is  to-day  as  perfect  as  it 
could  have  been  two  centuries  ago ; and  the  dig- 

>83 


East  of  Suez 


nity  and  sovereign  chastity  of  its  marble  surfaces 
—spoiled  by  no  misplaced  ornamentation,  and  un- 
sullied by  vandal— make  of  this  poetic  shrine  an 
offering  to  love  surpassed  in  beauty  by  nothing  in 
all  the  world  fashioned  or  reared  by  man. 

Nowheres  on  God’s  footstool  has  any  queen  such 
a monument,  and  it  is  even  more  beautiful  in  the 
silver  dress  of  moonlight  than  in  the  golden  robes 
of  the  midday  sun.  By  day  or  night  alike  it  makes 
an  impression  on  the  mind  that  time  can  never 
obliterate.  Shah  Jahan  erected  the  Jami  Masjid 
mosque  at  Delhi,  and  the  costly  Muti  Masjid 
mosque  in  Agra  Fort,  as  well  as  the  splendid  Khas 
Mahal,  the  Diwan-i-ain,  and  the  Diwan-i-khas, 
likewise  in  the  fort— but  more  satisfying  art  is 
represented  in  the  Taj  than  in  all  the  other  struc- 
tures of  his  reign. 


184 


CHAPTER  IX 


BENARES,  SACRED  CITY  OF  THE  HINDUS 

UNIQUE  among  Indian  cities  is  Benares,  and 
for  the  Hindu  the  sacred  capital  on  the  Gan- 
ges has  a significance  similar  to  that  of  Mecca  for 
the  Mohammedan,  and  a greater  attracting  power 
than  Jerusalem  has  for  the  Christian.  Benares  is 
the  home  and  shrine  of  the  complex  religion  that 
binds  the  Hindu  nations,  and  is  the  very  soul  and 
heart  of  Hinduism. 

No  other  place  where  men  congregate  can  com- 
pete with  deified  Benares  in  the  matter  of  divine 
merit  that  may  be  conferred  on  the  pilgrim  enter- 
ing its  gates  and  threading  its  narrow  and  filth- 
smeared  streets.  There  two  hundred  thousand 
people  live  and  fatten  upon  the  half  million  devo- 
tees coming  annually  to  the  idolatrous  fountain- 
head. The  sacred  city  attracts  this  tide  of  pious 
humanity  from  all  the  tribes  and  nations  of  many- 
peopled  India:  they  journey  to  Benares  brimming 
with  love  and  trustfulness,  and  after  a season 
spent  in  her  temples,  at  her  shrines,  and  by  her 
sacred  stream,  she  sends  them  forth  overflowing 
with  merit  and  zeal,  to  carry  her  fame  to  the  out- 
posts of  the  faith,  even  to  Afghanistan  and  Ba- 

185 


East  o i Suez 


luchistan,  and  to  the  nomadic  tribes  peopling 
Tibet  and  other  lands  beyond  the  mighty  Hima- 
layas. 

Somebody  with  a gift  for  nebulous  mathematics 
has  stated  that  more  than  two  hundred  thousand 
gods  of  the  Hindu  religion  are  represented  at 
Benares.  Whether  the  count  be  valid  matters  lit- 
tle, for  the  city  is  pre-eminent  as  the  special  do- 
main of  the  fundamental  god  of  India’s  slavish 
religion,  Siva,  whose  ensign— a gilt  trident  and 
perforated  disk— flashes  from  the  pinnacles  of 
hundreds  of  temples  and  palaces.  This  uncanny 
city  on  the  Ganges  is  naturally  the  Brahmins’  par- 
adise, for  these  devotees  constitute  a governing 
force  in  the  city’s  control,  and  from  this  fountain- 
head spread  their  influence  throughout  the  land  of 
Hind.  These  insinuating  men  of  religion  line  the 
river  bank,  and  infest  the  temples,  sitting  like  spi- 
ders waiting  for  their  prey.  Their  emissaries  are 
everywhere  in  India,  promoting  pilgrimages,  or 
hovering  about  the  entrances  to  the  city  to  make 
certain  of  the  arrival  of  the  unwary  enthusiast 
with  well  lined  purse.  Rich  and  poor,  high  caste 
and  low,  all  come  to  the  sacred  city.  Some  travel 
in  state  by  lordly  elephant  or  camel  caravan, 
others  by  railway;  but  none  follow  a surer  avenue 
to  eternal  grace  than  those  who  plod  on  foot  over 
the  Great  Trunk  highway,  sweeping  diagonally 
across  India,  after  the  manner  of  Kipling’s  holy 
man  from  Thibet  whose  footsteps  were  watched 
over  by  Kim.  The  “business”  of  Benares  being 
the  bestowal  of  holiness,  the  manufacture  of  brass 

186 


SCENE  ON  THE  GANGES,  BENARES 


Benares,  Sacred  City  of  the  Hindus 

goods  appealing  to  tourists  is  incidental  in  impor- 
tance and  revenue.  No  other  city  of  its  popula- 
tion can  have  a more  insignificant  trade  measure- 
able  by  statistics. 

For  three  miles  the  religious  section  of  Benares 
runs  along  the  brow  of  the  plateau  overlooking  the 
chocolate-hued  stream,  and  every  foot  of  this  dis- 
tance is  curious  and  interesting.  Falling  below 
the  disgusting  temple  resorted  to  by  pilgrims  from 
Nepal,  the  Hindu  region  beyond  India’s  frontier 
and  “the  snows,”  is  the  ghat  (a  ghat  is  a large 
stone  stairway  descending  to  the  river),  where  the 
good  Hindu  gives  his  dead  to  the  flames,  and  the 
muddy  inlet  from  the  Ganges  where  this  occurs  is 
dedicated  to  Vishnu,  “the  sleeper  on  the  waters,” 
a name  singularly  appropriate  to  a place  where 
the  ashes  of  the  dead  are  consigned  to  the  bosom 
of  “Mother  Ganga.” 

A visitor  observes  a number  of  platform-like 
structures  of  masonry  that  are  decorated  with 
roughly  carved  figures  of  men  and  women  stand- 
ing hand  in  hand.  Upon  these,  until  British  rule 
put  a stop  to  the  custom,  thousands  of  fanatical 
wives  underwent  suttee  and  were  burned  alive  with 
their  dead  husbands.  It  is  but  seldom  that  a cre- 
mation is  not  in  progress  at  the  burning  ghat. 
From  the  deck  of  a native  boat  moored  not  forty 
feet  away  I saw  in  a single  hour  eight  corpses  in 
varying  stages  of  consumption  by  fire.  The  trav- 
eler hardened  to  gruesome  spectacles  by  much 
journeying  in  Africa  and  Asia  experiences  but  lit- 
tle of  the  sickening  sensation  through  witnessing 

189 


9 


East  of  Suez 


a primitive  incineration  at  Benares  that  is  caused 
by  a visit  to  the  Parsee  towers  at  Bombay.  The 
Benares  operation  is  sanitary  and  practical,  and 
something  may  be  said  on  the  side  of  sentimental 
appropriateness  in  having  a corpse  borne  to  the 
riverside  by  one’s  relatives  and  friends,  and  there 
consumed  by  the  burning  of  a pyre  constructed  by 
the  hands  of  these.  The  dramatic  entities  become 
apparent  to  every  thoughtful  spectator,  probably. 

A clatter  of  brass  cymbals  reaches  the  ear,  and 
a cortege  appears  at  the  top  of  the  ghat,  while  des- 
ultory cries  of  “Rama,  nama,  satya  hai”—“ the 
name  of  Rama  is  true”— are  heard.  The  corpse, 
fastened  upon  a simple  bier  of  bamboo  sticks  and 
carried  on  the  shoulders  of  four  relatives,  is 
swathed  in  white  if  a male,  or  in  red  if  a female. 
The  bearers  hasten  almost  frantically  down  the 
decline  and  clumsily  drop  their  burden  in  the 
water,  feet  foremost,  and  make  certain  that  the 
current  will  have  undisturbed  play  upon  the  corpse 
without  sweeping  it  away.  The  mourners  repair 
to  the  place  where  dry  wood  is  sold  and  enter  upon 
spirited  bargaining  for  fuel  sufficient  to  consume 
their  relative,  whose  body  is  being  laved  and 
cleansed  of  spiritual  imperfections  not  a few  rods 
away  by  the  sacred  Ganges.  Only  six  or  eight  logs 
are  required.  The  dealer  demands  three  ru- 
pees for  them— and  the  grief-stricken  Hindus  of- 
fer one.  A bargain  is  finally  struck  at  two  rupees, 
with  a stick  of  sandal-wood  for  the  head  of  the 
pyre  thrown  in. 

The  logs  are  quickly  conveyed  to  the  burning- 

190 


BENARES  BURNING  GHAT,  WITH  CORPSES  BEING  PURIFIED  IN  THE  GANGES 


Benares,  Sacred  City  of  the  Hindus 

ground,  a satisfactory  site  for  the  sad  office  is  ex- 
peditiously chosen,  and  the  mourners  with  their 
own  hands  construct  the  pile.  Now  sanctified  by 
Mother  Ganga,  the  corpse  is  fetched  from  the 
strand  and  placed  on  the  structure,  feet  ever  di- 
rected toward  the  precious  river.  The  pyre  is  soon 
ready  for  the  torch,  and  here  occurs  a curious  in- 
cident, one  that  illustrates  the  monopolistic  impor- 
tance of  a man  wearing  only  a loin-cloth,  who  has 
been  taking  an  indifferent  interest  in  the  proceed- 
ings from  an  elevation  close  by.  He  is  a Dom,  of  a 
caste  so  degraded  that  should  he  inadvertently 
touch  a corpse  it  would  be  contaminated  beyond 
remedy.  But  immemorial  custom  requires  that 
the  fire  be  obtained  from  him,  and  he  may  demand 
payment  therefor  in  keeping  with  his  estimate  of 
the  worldly  position  of  the  applicants.  Ordinarily 
a rupee  is  sufficient,  although  for  a grandee’s  cre- 
mation a fee  of  a thousand  rupees  has  sometimes 
been  demanded  and  paid 

The  dicker  with  the  Dom  being  concluded,  the 
chief  mourner  lights  a handful  of  dried  reeds  at 
his  fire,  hurries  to  the  waiting  pyre,  walks  seven 
times  around  it,  and  with  the  blazing  reeds  held 
in  the  right  hand  lights  the  mass  at  head  and  foot. 
The  mourners  then  withdraw  to  a shaded  spot  be- 
side a suttee  structure,  and  silently  watch  the  con- 
flagration. In  an  hour  all  is  over,  and  the  ashes 
then  are  strewn  far  out  on  the  surface  of  the  Gan- 
ges and  are  borne  from  sight  by  the  current. 

From  ten  to  fifteen  corpses  are  disposed  of  at 
the  burning-ghat  daily,  and  several  cremations  are 

193 


East  of  Suez 


usually  simultaneously  in  process.  Now  and  then 
there  is  some  demonstration  of  grief,  but  not  often. 
I saw  two  men  wade  to  a body  in  the  river,  when 
they  pulled  away  the  covering  from  the  face  and 
bathed  it  with  handfuls  of  water  scooped  from  be- 
loved Ganga,  and  their  every  movement  denoted 
affection.  Again,  I witnessed  a tottering  and  sob- 
bing old  man  place  with  every  expression  of  ten- 
derness a garland  of  yellow  and  white  flowers 
about  the  neck  of  a corpse  swathed  in  red,  and  im- 
agined it  the  last  office  of  love  to  an  idolized 
daughter.  I also  observed  the  bare  corpse  of  a 
man  who  an  hour  before  had  died  of  plague 
brought  to  the  ghat  by  two  public  scavengers,  and 
committed  to  the  flames  of  a few  logs  much  too 
short,  until  the  slender  legs  had  been  doubled  be- 
neath the  body.  No  sandal-wood  perfumed  this 
pauper’s  pyre,  and  no  interment  in  potter’s  field 
was  ever  more  perfunctory  than  his  burning. 

Social  distinctions  are  as  marked  at  the  Benares 
burning-ghat  as  in  the  modern  American  ceme- 
tery. An  hour  spent  on  the  Ganges  bank  supplies 
sufficient  food  to  the  mind  for  weeks  of  serious  re- 
flection. 

One  of  the  greatest  spectacles  of  India  is  that  of 
pilgrims  bathing  in  the  Ganges.  From  several 
ghats  devoted  to  sacred  ablutions  numerous 
wooden  piers  extend  into  the  worshiped  stream, 
and  these  teem  with  pilgrims  from  every  section 
of  Hindustan,  in  every  variety  of  costume,  every 
stage  of  dress  and  undress,  there  to  purge  them- 
selves of  unclean  thoughts  and  wicked  deeds,  and 

194 


Benares,  Sacred  City  of  the  Hindus 

to  wash  away  bodily  impurities.  Preaching  cano- 
pies, shrines  for  rich  and  powerful  rajahs,  and 
stone  recesses  for  those  demanding  solitary  medi- 
tation, make  of  the  river  front  a place  literally 
teeming  with  humanity.  Devotees  are  every- 
where. Here  a pundit  is  reading  the  holy  law  to  a 
half  hundred  approving  Hindus ; there  a stately 
chieftain  from  remote  Kashmir  ceaselessly  mut- 
ters prayers  beneath  a huge  spreading  umbrella  of 
thatched  straw,  hired  from  a Brahmin  for  an 
hour;  and  ten  feet  away  a holy  ascetic,  naked  in 
the  scorching  sun,  smears  his  skin  with  the  gray 
ashes  of  penitence. 

Below  this  grotesque  medley  is  the  multitude  of 
men,  women  and  children,  breast  deep  in  the  sanc- 
tifying Ganges.  Thousands  have  come  on  foot 
from  far-away  villages  of  this  boundless  land  of 
paganism ; and  from  all  goes  up  a continuous  mur- 
mur of  prayer  and  adoration,  like  a moaning  wind 
emerging  from  a distant  forest.  Eye  and  ear  alike 
are  flooded  with  an  indescribable  rush  of  sensa- 
tions, and  the  heart  is  oppressed  with  the  august 
meanings  which  lie  behind  the  awe-inspiring  sight. 
All  the  Hindu  -cults  are  here— the  Ganges  welds 
them  in  her  holy  embrace.  But  conspicuous  above 
all  others  is  the  Brahmin  priest,  attracting  annas 
and  rupees  in  devious  ways  from  enthusiasts 
dazed  by  the  realization  that  they  have  bathed  in 
Mother  Ganga— some  want  a certificate  of  purity, 
others  want  seals  placed  on  vessels  of  water  to  be 
carried  to  loved  ones  suffering  from  infirmities. 
The  Brahmin  gives  certificate,  places  seals,  and 

195 


East  of  Suez 


performs  other  acts  enabling  him  to  garner  a har- 
vest of  silver  and  gold. 

Now  and  again  a moribund  believer,  whose 
friends  seek  for  him  something  that  may  be  con- 
strued as  a last  blessing,  is  hurried  to  the  river’s 
edge.  It  is  a sacrament  that  cannot  be  delayed 
many  minutes— and  the  Brahmin  fortunate 
enough  to  be  appealed  to  charges  at  emergency 
rates.  When  business  slackens  this  harpy  com- 
poses his  nearly-naked  body  on  a plank  overlap- 
ping the  river,  and  executes  with  studied  delibera- 
tion a program  of  purification  marvelous  in  detail. 
Receptacles  of  brass  and  silver  are  brought  him, 
and  for  an  hour  or  longer  he  rubs  his  handsome 
frame  with  unguents  and  perfumes,  slowly  stripes 
forehead,  biceps  and  breast  with  the  asli-marks  of 
sanctity,  and  places  a wTafer  of  his  caste  on  his 
forehead.  Later  he  climbs  the  ghat  to  his  favorite 
temple,  probably  content  with  the  emoluments 
thrust  upon  him  at  the  water  side,  or  may  be  he 
goes  to  the  bazaar  to  learn  the  latest  gossip  of  re- 
ligious and  political  India.  It  is  in  no  sense  a los- 
ing game  to  be  a member  of  the  Bralnninistic  ring 
controlling  things  in  Benares,  for  the  flow  of  coin 
from  the  two  hundred  million  Hindus  is  ceaseless. 

A curious  sight  in  Benares  is  the  Monkey  Tem- 
ple, a pretentious  and  not  inartistic  structure  of 
carved  red  sandstone  dedicated  to  Kali,  the  god- 
dess wife  of  Siva.  The  image  of  Kali  within  the 
temple  is  a black  fury  of  hideous  countenance, 
whose  red  tongue  droops  to  the  waist.  She  is  drip- 
ping with  blood,  and  crowned  with  snakes,  while 

196 


BENARES  HOLY  MEN 


Benares,  Sacred  City  of  the  Hindus 

hanging  from  her  neck  is  a garland  of  human 
skulls.  Kali  wants  blood,  and  if  not  propitiated 
daily  therewith  something  horrible  is  expected  to 
happen.  Every  Indian  town  has  a temple  to  this 
monster;  and  everywhere  throughout  what  Kip- 
ling calls  “the  great,  gray,  formless  India,”  sac- 
rifices are  made  each  morning  to  this  ogress  with 
insatiable  appetite  for  blood. 

The  entrance  to  the  Monkey  Temple  is  slime- 
covered  and  the  air  heavy  with  sickening  odors. 
Through  a stone  doorway  the  goddess  may  be  seen 
enshrined,  grinning  demoniacally.  Twenty  horri- 
ble men,  harmonizing  in  appearance  to  a reader’s 
conception  of  thugs,  gather  in  the  court,  to  give 
each  batch  of  visitors  the  performance  that  most 
have  come  to  witness.  The  frontal  region  of  their 
heads  is  shaven  smooth,  and  each  loathsome  In- 
dian drools  betel-nut  saliva  that  looks  like  blood. 
A goat  is  led  into  the  enclosure  and  tied  to  a stone 
post,  and  the  evil-looking  men  form  a circle  about 
the  helpless  animal.  One  of  them  holds  the  rear 
legs  of  the  beast  clear  of  the  ground.  A chant  is- 
sues from  the  betel-stained  mouths,  and  a human 
fiend  forces  through  the  circle,  brandishing  a 
straight-bladed  sword,  heavy  and  keen-edged,  that 
has  just  been  blessed  before  the  altar  of  Kali.  He 
is  the  official  executioner. 

This  functionary  makes  a sign  of  readiness, 
swings  the  blade  at  arm’s  length  for  a moment 
and  lands  a blow  on  the  underside  of  the  animal’s 
throat  that  severs  the  head  from  the  body.  The 
gushing  blood  is  directed  to  the  Siva  emblem  close 

1Q9 


East  of  Suez 


by,  the  head  is  borne  triumphantly  to  the  feet  of 
Kali,  and  each  thug-looking  man  smears  his  face 
with  blood  taken  from  the  Siva  symbol,  and  then 
dances  madly  around  the  carcass.  Assuming  that 
the  spectacle  has  favorably  impressed  the  visitor, 
the  high  executioner  begs  a donation  with  which  to 
purchase  a goat  for  a second  sacrifice.  You  de- 
cline, probably  feeling  that  you  would  subscribe 
bountifully  if  a priest  might  be  substituted  for  the 
helpless  beast. 

On  important  days  in  the  Hindu  calendar  many 
goats  and  sheep  are  sacrificed,  and  sometimes  buf- 
faloes as  well.  In  time  of  pestilence  or  famine  it  is 
not  unusual  to  find  a child ’s  head  deposited  in  the 
early  morn  at  Kali’s  feet,  it  is  claimed. 

The  inner  court  of  the  Monkey  Temple,  like  the 
ceremony  of  the  slaughter,  is  open  to  the  heavens, 
and  is  surrounded  by  a cloister  lined  with  cell-like 
niches  for  solitary  meditation  and  introspection. 
On  the  terrace,  on  every  protruding  bit  of  archi- 
tecture, on  every  window  ledge— wherever  foot- 
hold may  be  gained— are  monkeys,  loathsomely 
fat,  and  made  more  disgusting  from  years  of  pam- 
pering than  are  the  human  freaks  on  the  pave- 
ment. Great  tamarind  trees  overhanging  the  tem- 
ple are  alive  with  monkeys.  They  drop  to  the 
ground,  run  between  your  legs,  and  dash  before 
you  at  every  turning.  You  are  entreated  to  pay 
for  basins  of  parched  corn  thrown  to  the  revolting 
creatures  by  your  priestly  guide,  and  do  so,  but 
are  glad  when  the  monkeys  show  their  apprecia- 
tion from  a distance.  From  three  to  four  hundred 


200 


Benares,  Sacred  City  of  the  Hindus 

of  these  mangy  animals  belong  to  the  temple,  and 
are  held  to  be  sacred.  At  Benares  everything  spe- 
cially nasty  or  repulsive  is  protected  by  the  cloak 
of  sanctity. 

You  are  glad  to  get  back  to  your  carriage,  so 
thankful  that  you  throw  a couple  of  rupees  to  the 
mob  of  appealing  “priests,”  in  your  heart  possi- 
bly wishing  that  the  money  might  be  invested  in 
soap  and  scrubbing  brushes— and  in  poison  for 
the  monkeys.  Urging  the  coachman  to  drive 
speedily  for  the  open  space  and  pure  air  of  Ben- 
ares cantonments,  you  wonder  as  you  proceed 
what  place  in  religion  can  reasonably  be  occupied 
by  the  revolting  customs  and  beings  to  be  wit- 
nessed at  the  Monkey  Temple,  and  it  is  with  no 
regret  that  you  learn  from  eminent  authority  that 
in  less  than  a hundred  years  every  temple  and 
shrine  perched  on  the  brink  of  the  plateau  crown- 
ing the  Ganges  will  be  undermined  and  its  descent 
not  arrested  until  the  structure  reaches  the  river ’s 
bed.  Those  responsible  for  locating  Benares  on 
the  outer  periphery  of  a great  bend  in  the  Ganges 
proved  themselves  to  possess  no  engineering  fore- 
sight. But  India’s  controlling  religion  can  receive 
no  setback  by  the  destruction  of  a few  score  taw- 
dry buildings  consecrated  to  its  gods,  for  they  will 
be  replaced  by  better  shrines  and  temples,  rising 
from  places  beyond  even  the  iconoclasm  of  the  sa- 
cred Ganges. 

Investigation  reveals  sufficient  merit  in  the  re- 
ligio-philosopliies  of  Mohammedanism  and  Bud- 
dhism to  explain  their  adoption  by  teeming  mil- 


201 


East  of  Suez 


lions.  Each  faith  offers  admirable  precepts  and 
teachings,  and  prolonged  study  of  them  produces 
a feeling  of  respect  for  all  true  believers.  But  a 
season  of  travel  in  India,  entered  upon  with  the 
desire  to  dispassionately  study  the  Hindu  religion 
in  the  land  of  its  overweening  strength,  produces 
only  bewilderment  and  mental  nausea.  The  more 
determined  one  may  be  to  lay  bare  the  gems  of 
this  faith  and  its  administration  by  the  Brahmins, 
the  keener  will  be  his  disappointment,  for  not  a re- 
deeming feature  will  he  find,  and  he  may  quit  In- 
dia smarting  with  regret  over  wasted  time.  To 
such  an  investigator  Hinduism  must  forever  be  re- 
membered as  paganism  steeped  in  idolatry.  More, 
its  gruesome  sacrifices  will  provoke  only  disgust, 
perhaps  equaled  by  that  called  forth  by  the  un- 
speakably coarse  temple  carvings  and  ornamenta- 
tion of  the  cars  of  juggernaut.  I have  been  ac- 
quainted with  Indian  gentlemen  proud  to  be 
known  as  Hindus,  and  have  been  amazed  to  hear 
them  avow  devotion  to  the  hideous  idolatry  that 
absorbs  a great  part  of  the  time  of  two  hundred 
million  people  in  India  alone.  If  the  strong  arm 
of  England  were  not  raised  over  the  great  empire 
of  the  East  the  suttee  rite  and  child  sacrifice  would 
unquestionably  prevail  to-day.  To  a westerner 
Hinduism  seems  the  greatest  abomination  of  the 
earth. 


202 


BRAHMIN  PRIEST 


CHAPTER  X 


India’s  modern  capital 

KIPLING,  who  has  gracefully  lured  roamers 
to  India  by  saying,  “It  is  good  for  every 
man  to  see  some  little  of  the  great  Indian  Empire 
and  the  strange  folk  who  move  about  it,’’  oblig- 
ingly prepares  those  entering  by  the  gateway  of 
Calcutta  for  an  olfactory  affront.  The  stenches  of 
Calcutta  are  numerous  and  pervading,  surely ; but 
the  tourist  who  has  crawled  up  the  Bay  of  Bengal 
in  a caravel  of  the  Peninsular  & Oriental  Com- 
pany cheerfully  accepts  them.  The  “P.  & 0.’’  line 
is  one  of  Britain’s  venerated  institutions;  conse- 
quently English  people  would  as  soon  commit  a 
felony  as  criticize  this  antiquated  concern.  In 
these  times  ten-knot  passenger  steamers  are  hard 
to  find  outside  the  Calcutta  service  of  the  “P.  & 
0.”  Company  and  in  marine  junk  yards. 

As  a great  commercial  port,  Calcutta  is  unfor- 
tunately located.  It  is  on  the  Hooghly  river,  one 
of  the  outlets  of  the  sacred  Ganges,  and  ninety 
miles  from  its  mouth.  The  Hooghly  is  a tortuous 
stream  of  mud  that  can  be  navigated  by  large  ves- 
sels only  by  daylight  and  with  favoring  conditions 
of  tide,  for  its  channel  is  seldom  two  days  alike. 

205 


East  of  Suez 


This  demands  expert  piloting,  and  explains  why 
Hooghly  pilots  are  selected  with  great  caution.  A 
Hooghly  pilot  is  the  very  maximum  of  a nautical 
swell,  and  one’s  boarding  of  a ship  attended  by 
man-servant  and  a mass  of  belongings  partakes 
somewhat  of  the  character  of  a function. 

This  Calcutta  pilot  is  a fine  fellow— well-bred, 
educated,  and  entitled  to  the  splendid  compensa- 
tion and  social  position  which  he  enjoys.  Since 
the  days  of  the  East  India  Company,  the  fore- 
runner of  British  rule  in  India,  the  pilots  of  the 
Hooghly  have  been  esteemed  as  personages  and 
they  have  taken  rank  but  slightly  lower  than  offi- 
cers of  the  navy,  and  much  ahead  of  ordinary  com- 
mercial people  and  mariners.  When  off  duty  in 
Calcutta  the  pilot  goes  to  his  club  and  drives  on 
the  Maidan  with  other  Anglo-Indians  of  quality, 
and  never  is  seen  about  hotel  bars  and  cafes  like 
the  ruck  of  seafaring  men  having  a spare  day  on 
shore. 

The  Hooghly  is  charted  practically  every  twen- 
ty-four hours,  and  on  his  way  upstream  the  pilot 
gets  his  information  pertaining  to  depths  and  bars 
by  signals  from  stations  on  shore.  The  river  pre- 
sents nothing  of  interest  to  the  traveler  until  a 
point  twenty  miles  from  Calcutta  is  reached ; 
thereafter  it  is  a stream  of  many  attractions.  For- 
tifications with  visible  native  troops  and  an  occa- 
sional red-coated  English  soldier  occur  fre- 
quently ; then  come  scores  of  enormous  cotton  and 
jute  mills,  attended  by  strange-looking  stern-wheel 
steamboats,  most  of  them  with  huge  cargo  barges 

206 


A CALCUTTA  NAUTCH  DANCER 


India’s  Modern  Capital 

on  either  side.  At  last  Calcutta  is  in  sight.  Tall 
factory  chimneys  and  domed  public  buildings  pro- 
nounce it  a city  of  size  and  importance.  The  last 
two  miles  of  the  journey  are  made  through  a flo- 
tilla of  shipping,  a bewildering  medley  of  sailing 
vessels  and  steamers,  flying  the  flags  of  all  the 
maritime  nations  of  the  earth— all  but  the  Stars 
and  Stripes  of  Uncle  Sam. 

Bombay,  on  the  other  side  of  India,  and  imme- 
diately on  the  sea,  would  make  a better  capital 
than  Calcutta.  But  the  malodorous  city  of  the 
Hooghly  will  probably  ever  be  the  seat  of  Bri- 
tain’s rule. 

While  the  names  of  Warren  Hastings  and  Clive 
dominate  the  printed  page  dealing  with  modern 
India,  Calcutta  fairly  throbs  with  recollections  of 
Job  Charnock,  the  audacious  Englishman  who 
raised  the  red  flag  of  Britain  just  two  hundred  and 
seventeen  years  ago  over  a collection  of  mud  hov- 
els and  straw  huts  on  the  site  of  what  to-day  is  the 
capital  of  the  Indian  Empire. 

Charnock,  perhaps  the  founder  of  England’s 
rule  in  the  East,  was  the  agent  of  the  old  East  In- 
dian Company.  Having  been  granted  permission 
by  the  Mogul  rulers  to  establish  a post  on  the 
Hooghly  convenient  for  trading  purposes,  he 
chose  a spot  having  the  advantage  of  a generous 
shade  tree.  The  spot  and  neighborhood  now  is 
Calcutta,  the  chief  city  of  India,  with  over  a mil- 
lion inhabitants.  A Hindu  village  in  the  vicinity 
of  the  place  where  Charnock  established  his  trad- 
ing post  was  called  Khali-gliat— these  words,  cor- 

209 


East  of  Suez 


rupted  by  use,  have  come  to  mean  “Calcutta.” 
The  quaint  pioneer  obviously  had  no  realization  of 
the  part  he  was  playing  in  empire-making,  and 
Great  Britain  has  never  made  adequate  acknow- 
ledgment of  the  gratitude  clearly  this  man’s  due. 
Calcutta  residents  delight  to  recount  Charnock’s 
exploits,  and  they  take  visitors  to  St.  John’s 
churchyard  to  view  the  substantial  monument  be- 
neath which  rest  his  bones.  The  inscription  states 
that  he  died  January  10,  1693. 

A single  story  proves  Charnock’s  independence 
of  character.  He  went  with  his  ordinary  guard  of 
soldiers  to  witness  the  burning  of  the  body  of  a 
Hindu  grandee,  whose  wife  was  reputed  more  than 
passing  fair.  It  was  known  that  the  rite  of  the 
suttee  was  to  be  performed— the  widow  was  to 
sacrifice  herself  upon  the  blazing  pyre  of  the  de- 
ceased, in  keeping  with  Hindu  custom.  Char- 
nock  was  so  impressed  by  the  young  widow’s 
charms  that  he  ordered  his  soldiers  to  rescue  her 
and  by  force  take  her  to  his  home.  They  were 
speedily  married,  had  several  children  and  lived 
happily  for  many  years.  Instead  of  converting 
her  to  Christianity,  she  made  him  a proselyte  to 
paganism,  and  the  only  shred  of  Christianity 
thereafter  remarkable  in  him  was  the  burying  of 
her  decently  when  she  was  removed  by  death ; but 
Charnock  is  said  to  have  observed  in  true  pagan 
manner  each  anniversary  of  her  demise,  even  to 
making  animal  sacrifices  before  the  image  of  the 
goddess  Khali. 

Calcutta  has  improved  greatly  since  Kipling 


210 


GENERAL  POST-OFFICE,  CALCUTTA 


India’s  Modern  Capital 

wrote  of  it  as  the  “City  of  Dreadful  Night”;  but 
it  is  yet  a place  of  striking  contrasts,  of  official 
splendor  and  native  squalor,  of  garish  palaces 
abutting  in  rear  allies  upon  filthy  hovels.  The 
good  is  extremely  good— that  is  for  the  British 
official;  the  bad  is  worse  than  awful— and  that  is 
for  the  native. 

Viewed  superficially,  Calcutta  looks  like  a pros- 
perous city  in  Europe,  perhaps  in  England;  but 
rear  streets  and  suburbs  are  as  filthy  and  conges- 
ted as  any  town  in  vast  India.  What  the  average 
tourist  beholds  is  spick  and  span  in  a modern 
sense;  and  what  he  does  n’t  see  is  intensely  Asi- 
atic, with  all  that  the  word  can  mean.  Being  a city 
of  extremes,  the  visitor  may  be  brought  to  his 
front  windows  by  the  warning  cries  of  the  foot- 
men of  a sojourning  maharajah  driving  in  state 
to  a function,  while  through  the  rear  windows  float 
the  plaintive  notes  of  the  muezzin  calling  the 
faithful  to  prayers  from  the  minaret  of  a Moham- 
medan mosque  close  by. 

The  Indian  metropolis  presents  an  array  of  fine 
homes,  bungalows  and  stucco  villas,  put  up  when 
the  rupee  was  worth  two  shillings  and  a penny, 
wherein  unhappiness  may  now  dwell,  because  the 
rupee  has  depreciated  to  a shilling  and  fourpence. 
The  parade  of  fashion  on  the  Maidan  late  in  the 
afternoon  presents  every  variety  of  equipage  and 
livery  known  to  the  East.  The  horse-flesh  of  Cal- 
cutta is  uniformly  fine.  Better  animals  than  are 
daily  grouped  around  the  band  stand,  or  along  the 
rail  of  the  race-course,  cannot  be  found  short  of 

213 


East  of  Suez 


Europe.  The  viceroy  is  often  seen  driving  a mail 
phaeton,  preceded  by  two  native  lancers  and  fol- 
lowed by  four  others.  The  automobile  has  many 
devotees  in  Calcutta,  and  bicycle-riding  natives 
are  everywhere.  The  babu  is  exceedingly  fond  of 
wheeling  on  the  Maidan  whenever  he  can  escape 
from  his  account  books.  Nearly  every  carriage  on 
the  Maidan  in  the  afternoon  has  two  men  on  the 
box  and  two  footmen  behind,  all  gorgeously 
dressed— servants  are  cheap  in  India.  At  sun- 
down nowadays  half  the  pianos  in  Chowringee— 
where  Calcutta’s  officials  and  prosperous  commer- 
cial people  reside— seem  to  be  playing  airs  from 
American  light  operas,  and  not  infrequently  a reg- 
imental band  compliments  the  United  States  by 
playing  “Hiawatha”  or  one  of  Sousa’s  composi- 
tions. 

It  is  compensating  to  a person  burdened  with 
the  habit  of  wondering  where  words  come  from,  to 
discover  that  Dum-dum  is  a suburb  of  Calcutta, 
and  is  important  as  a military  post  and  as  the  seat 
of  an  ammunition  factory  and  arsenal. 

The  sights  of  Calcutta  are  unimportant.  The 
general  post-office  occupies  the  site  of  the  native 
prison  whose  horrors  of  the  Black  Hole  stain  chap- 
ters of  Indian  history;  and  a description  of  the 
burning  of  human  bodies  on  the  bank  of  the 
Hooghly,  and  of  the  animal  sacrifices  at  the  old 
Hindu  temple  at  Khali-ghat,  would  be  disagreeably 
gruesome.  The  gaudy  Jain  temple  interests  for 
a few  minutes,  and  the  exterior  of  Fort  William 
impresses  the  casual  spectator.  The  zoological 

214 


SHIPPING  ON  THE  HOOGHLY,  CALCUTTA 


India’s  Modern  Capital 

garden  is  conventional,  and  the  feature  of  the  bo- 
tanical garden  is  probably  the  largest  banyan  tree 
in  the  world.  Calcutta  hotels,  deplorably  poor, 
have  been  fitly  described  as  of  two  kinds— bad  and 
adjectively  bad.  All  that  interests  the  visitor 
within  the  modern  capital  of  ancient  India  is  the 
movement  of  official  and  social  life,  and  the  parade 
of  races  forming  the  population  of  the  marvelous, 
mysterious  country. 

There,  across  the  esplanade,  with  imposing  gates 
and  approaches,  is  Government  House,  winter 
seat  of  the  Viceroy  of  India— whose  most  distin- 
guished incumbent  in  recent  years  was  His  Excel- 
lency the  Right  Honorable  the  Baron  Curzon  of 
Kedleston,  P.  C.,  G.  M.  S.  I.,  G.  M.  I.  E.,  etc.,  etc. 
Few  traveling  Americans  had  the  time  to  speak 
of  him  in  a manner  honoring  all  these  designa- 
tions. Visitors  from  Chicago  used  to  refer  to  him, 
it  was  claimed,  with  naive  simplicity  as  “Mary 
Leiter’s  husband,”  and  let  it  go  at  that.  A person 
of  extraordinary  ability  was  this  husband  of  an 
American  queen,  and  it  is  generally  believed  that 
he  may  some  day  be  prime  minister  of  England. 
The  viceroyship  is  the  highest  appointive  office  in 
the  world.  Its  compensation  is  the  equivalent  of 
$80,000  per  annum,  but  the  allowances  for  enter- 
taining European  functionaries,  an  army  of  na- 
tive servants,  and  a stableful  of  horses  and  ele- 
phants for  State  ceremonials,  swells  the  amount 
two  or  threefold.  Both  at  Government  House  in 
Calcutta  and  at  the  summer  home  in  Simla  the 
viceroy  is  surrounded  by  a court  equalled  in  splen- 


East  of  Suez 


dor  by  few  royalties  in  Europe.  Compared  with 
the  increment  and  disbursements  of  India’s  vice- 
roy, those  of  the  President  of  the  United  States 
appear  insignificant.  But  oriental  show  and  pa- 
rade are  expensive,  so  expensive  in  fact,  that  a 
viceroy  is  forced  to  make  liberal  drafts  upon  his 
private  purse. 

India  may  have  had  as  capable  rulers  in  the 
past  as  Lord  Curzon,  but  rarely  one  more  tactful 
or  courageous,  and  never  one  having  the  assis- 
tance of  a vicereine  possessing  the  charm  and 
lovable  qualities  of  the  late  Lady  Curzon.  Her 
splendid  work  in  behalf  of  the  natives,  especially 
the  women,  endeared  her  to  all  Indians.  The 
Delhi  durbar  in  1903  honored  Edward  VII  in  a de- 
gree unsurpassed,  but  was  a greater  personal  tri- 
umph for  Viceroy  Curzon  and  his  accomplished 
consort  from  Chicago.  His  administration  had 
many  perplexing  situations  to  deal  with  and  one  of 
them  forced  his  resignation.  The  constant  night- 
mare of  a viceroy  of  India  is  famine,  and  twice 
Lord  Curzon  had  to  deal  with  this— one  visitation 
alone  cost  the  Indian  Government  fifty  million 
pounds  sterling.  His  understanding  of  frontier 
technicalities,  and  the  ways  and  wiles  of  native 
rulers-  none  too  loyal  to  British  rule,  assisted 
mightily  in  the  successful  administration  of  his 
high  office.  Under  the  Curzons’  regime  Govern- 
ment House  balls  and  garden  parties  were  counted 
the  most  brilliant  occurring  in  the  East. 

A mighty  personage  in  present-day  Calcutta  is 
General  Viscount  Kitchener,  commander-in-chief 

2l8 


India’s  Modern  Capital 

of  the  Indian  army.  In  Egypt  he  reformed  the 
nature  of  the  Nile  peasant  to  the  extent  of  making 
good  fighters  of  the  sons  of  the  cravens  of  Tel-el- 
Kebir;  good  enough,  when  led  by  British  officers, 
to  annihilate  the  army  of  the  Khalifa ; and  in  South 
Africa  Kitchener  wound  up  with  success  a war 
that  had  been  horribly  bungled  by  others.  Mili- 
tary critics  had  long  been  aware  that  the  army  of 
India  was  antiquated,  honeycombed  with  dry-rot, 
and  largely  ruled  by  favorites  sitting  in  high 
places  at  Whitehall.  Consequently,  Kitchener  was 
sent  to  India  with  instructions  conferring  almost 
plenary  power  to  reorganize  the  forces,  British  as 
well  as  native.  He  prefers  work  to  participating 
in  the  social  game. 

In  England  there  is  a growing  desire  that  finds 
expression  frequently  in  the  newspapers  for 
Kitchener’s  translation  from  Calcutta  to  the  War 
Office  in  London,  from  whence  the  British  army 
as  a whole  might  profit  by  the  trenchant  efforts 
of  the  Irish  soldier  who  has  seldom  blundered.  As 
commander  in  India  Lord  Kitchener  is  paid  a 
lakh  of  rupees  a year— $32,000,  and  heads  an 
army  of  242,000  men— 77,000  British  and  165,000 
native  troops. 

The  lieutenant-governor  of  Bengal,  always 
spoken  of  as  the  “L.  G.”  resides  in  Calcutta  and 
works  in  close  relationship  with  the  viceroy.  This 
British  functionary  administers  the  affairs  of  a 
territory  but  one  twentieth  the  area  of  the  United 
States,  but  which  possesses  75,000,000  people. 

And  what  is  this  India,  governed  by  Great  Bri- 

219 


East  of  Suez 


tain  through  its  delegated  officials?  It  is  a coun- 
try greater  than  all  Europe,  omitting  Russia,  and 
fully  half  as  large  as  the  United  States.  Its  popu- 
lation numbers  300,000,000,  and  is  the  most  hete- 
rogeneous of  any  land  in  the  world— were  there 
homogeneity,  or  anything  approaching  it,  a mere 
handful  of  Britons  could  not  hope  to  control  a fifth 
part  of  the  people  of  the  earth.  India  is  made  up 
of  a multiplicity  of  races  and  tribes,  professing 
every  religion  of  paganism ; and  these  are  separa- 
ted by  thousands  upon  thousands  of  castes  each 
going  its  own  distinct  and  peculiar  way.  Great 
Britain’s  control  of  these  teeming  millions  is 
unique  in  the  history  of  oversea  rule.  India  is  al- 
most exclusively  agricultural,  and  in  sections  of 
Bengal  averages  900  people  to  the  square  mile. 
At  the  beginning  of  1906  the  government  had 
brought  14,000,000  acres  of  waste  land  under  cul- 
tivation by  irrigation  upon  an  expenditure  of 
$135,000,000.  India  now  has  215  cotton  mills, 
which  employ  a capital  of  $70,000,000,  and  last 
year’s  jute  product  of  Bengal  alone  was  valued  at 
$70,000,000.  The  Indian  Empire  is  ponderous 
and  complex  from  any  point  of  view.  Possessing 
but  half  the  area  of  the  United  States,  it  repre- 
sents one  seventh  of  the  British  Empire,  and  more 
than  seven  times  the  combined  population  of 
Great  Britain  and  Ireland.  It  should  not  be  as- 
sumed that  the  whole  of  India  is  under  British 
rule,  for  practically  a third  of  the  country  is  still 
governed  by  independent  native  princes.  With 
almost  four  times  the  population  of  the  United 


220 


CALCUTTA  COOLIES 


India’s  Modern  Capital 

States,  India  supports  less  than  29,000  miles  of 
railway,  as  against  215,000  miles  in  the  great  re- 
public—and  this  difference  makes  the  contrast  be- 
tween Asiatic  conservatism  and  New  World  pro- 
gress. 

The  person  demanding  physical  statistics  gets 
enough  pabulum  in  a day’s  search  to  keep  the 
machinery  of  the  mind  going  for  months,  and  must 
be  amazed  when  learning  that  there  are  seven  hun- 
dred and  twenty-one  distinct  languages  and  dia- 
lects spoken  in  India ; that  the  population  has  treb- 
led with  the  British  occupation ; that  for  every  in- 
sane person  in  India  there  are  thirteen  in  Europe, 
—the  words  “placid  East”  purveying  the  explan- 
ation. Taking  the  country  by  and  large  it  is 
claimed  that  only  one  male  in  ten  and  only  one  fe- 
male out  of  a hundred  and  forty-four,  can  read 
and  write ; and  it  is  said  by  British  residents  in  the 
land  that  the  native  knows  no  such  thing  as  schol- 
arship—he  learns  everything  by  rote,  even  to  the 
extent  of  perfect  recitation,  without  comprehend- 
ing the  meaning  of  the  words  he  is  uttering.  It  is 
the  nature  of  illiterate  Hindus  to  resort  to  the  ex- 
tremest  extravagance  in  nearly  every  statement, 
and  it  is  not  uncommon  for  report  to  have  it  that 
an  Englishman  has  spoken  abusively  of  a hundred 
thousand  good  Hindus,  when  that  individual  has 
merely  intimated  to  a native  servant  that  he 
would  like  his  morning  meal  served  with  more 
punctuality.  The  illiterate  Hindu,  it  is  interest- 
ing to  know,  believes  that  the  human  soul  passes 
through  eight  million  reincarnations.  When  this 

223 


East  of  Suez 


child  of  the  East  deals  with  numbers  his  tongue 
runs  into  meaningless  extravagance,  and  there  ap- 
pears to  be  no  communion  between  his  intellect 
and  speech. 

While  marriage  is  universal  in  India,  if  not 
obligatory,  the  custom  forbidding  the  remarriage 
of  widows  works  an  injustice  to  the  sex  amounting 
to  national  disgrace.  A Hindu  maiden  who  at 
twelve  or  thirteen  is  unmarried  brings  social  oblo- 
quy on  her  family  and  entails  retrospective  dam- 
nation on  three  generations  of  ancestors.  A 
Hindu  man  must  marry  and  beget  children  to 
make  certain  of  his  funeral  rites,  lest  his  spirit 
wander  uneasily  in  the  waste  places  of  the  earth 
or  be  precipitated  into  the  temporary  hell  called 
Put.  The  last  available  census  discloses  the  as- 
tonishing fact  that  there  are  twenty-six  million 
widows  in  India,  meaning  that  out  of  every  hun- 
dred women  at  least  fourteen  have  been  bereft  of 
their  husbands,  and  consequently  are  no  better 
than  human  derelicts  upon  the  earth.  It  is  a teach- 
ing of  the  abominable  Hindu  faith  that  the  bride- 
groom cometh  but  once.  A pundit  of  the  belief 
will  argue  that  the  practical  reason  for  prohibit- 
ing remarriage  is  to  prevent  the  crowding  of  the 
marriage  market— and  this  is  the  only  “reason” 
that  can  be  extracted  from  one  claiming  to  speak 
with  knowledge  on  the  unfortunate  subject.  The 
enlightened  Gaekwar  of  Baroda,  devoting  influ- 
ence and  fortune  to  the  moral  uplifting  of  the 
people  of  his  land,  pronounces  the  custom  forbid- 
ding the  remarriage  of  widows  to  be  a national 

224 


India’s  Modern  Capital 

curse  exceeded  only  by  that  compassed  by  the 
word  “caste.” 

A statistical  paper  on  India  issued  recently  by 
the  British  Government  shows  that  there  were 
killed  in  that  country  last  year  by  snakes  and  wild 
beasts  24,034  persons— 21,880  by  snake  bites,  796 
by  tigers,  399  by  leopards,  and  the  rest  by  other 
animals.  The  number  of  cattle  destroyed  by 
snakes  and  wild  beasts  was  98,582. 

The  other  side  of  the  account  shows  that  65,146 
snakes  and  16,121  wild  animals  were  killed,  for 
which  rewards  aggregating  $37,000  were  paid. 


225 


CHAPTER  XI 


ISLAND  LINKS  IN  BRITAIN  *S  CHAIN  OF  EMPIRE 

IF  one  be  a sufferer  from  anglophobia,  a tour 
of  the  globe  by  conventional  paths  may  pro- 
duce rather  more  irritation  than  is  good  for  man— 
to  such  a traveler  the  British  Empire  is  a chronic 
nightmare,  for  the  red  flag  is  everywhere.  Every 
harbor  seems  choked  with  English  shipping,  if  not 
guarded  by  a British  warship;  and  Tommy  At- 
kins is  the  first  man  met  ashore.  If  your  prejudice 
against  Great  Britain  be  unjustly  conceived,  you 
will  probably  revise  your  judgment  before  the 
earth  is  half  circled ; at  least  you  must  confess  that 
Britain  is  great  from  the  standpoint  of  area. 

A globe-trotter  who  has  had  “Britannia  Rules 
the  Wave”  ringing  in  his  ears  from  Gibraltar  to 
Ceylon,  connects  again  with  the  “thin  red  line” 
the  moment  his  ship  emerges  from  the  Bay  of  Ben- 
gal. Penang  then  is  the  link  in  the  interminable 
chain  of  colonies  upon  which  the  sun  never  sets. 
“Well,  this  is  but  an  island,  and  a small  one  at 
that ; consequently  I won’t  let  it  worry  me,”  solilo- 
quizes the  anglophobe. 

Penang  is  doubly  remarkable.  Firstly,  the  tour- 

226 


Island  Links 


ist  is  there  made  to  understand  that  he  has  fin- 
ished with  that  great  division  of  the  earth  known 
as  “the  East,”  and  is  at  the  portal  of  the  Far 
East,  the  realm  wherein  the  Chinaman,  Malay  and 
Japanese  teem  in  uncounted  millions.  Besides, 
Penang  is  the  premier  tin  port  of  the  universe. 
Seven  tenths  of  this  metal  used  by  the  world  starts 
for  market  from  Penang  and  its  neighboring  ports 
in  the  Malacca  Straits. 

“Rule  Britannia”  is  played  next  at  Singapore, 
likewise  an  island,  and,  as  is  Penang,  a place  al- 
most wholly  given  over  to  Chinese  and  their 
shops.  Few  coastal  towns  in  China  possess  a 
greater  percentage  of  Celestials  than  England’s 
city  at  the  tip  end  of  the  Malay  peninsula  and 
abutting  on  the  equator.  Sir  Stamford  Raffles 
placed  Englishmen— and  Chinamen— under  ever- 
lasting obligation  when  he  brought  Singapore  into 
being.  Raffles  possessed  the  empire-building  in- 
stinct, surely,  and  earned  the  honor  of  interment 
in  Westminster  Abbey. 

Singapore  harbor  commands  one  of  the  great- 
est natural  turnstiles  of  commerce.  Shipping  has 
no  other  option  than  to  use  it.  While  Englishmen 
have  administered  the  port  and  city  since  Raffles ’s 
time,  thousands  of  Chinamen  have  there  waxed  ex- 
tremely fat.  The  ’rickshaw  coolie  of  Singapore, 
even,  is  physically  perfect,  and  consequently  in 
agreeable  contrast  to  the  Indian  of  calfless  legs, 
and  his  Cingalese  colleague  of  weak  lungs.  The 
Chinese  ’rickshawman  whisks  a visitor  about 
Singapore  with  the  stride  of  a race-horse.  For  a 

227 


East  of  Suez 


city  only  a degree  north  of  the  equator,  Singapore 
offers  creature  comforts  in  sufficient  number  to 
make  human  existence  there  extremely  attractive. 

Nabobs  and  well-conditioned  humanity  of  Poly- 
nesia esteem  Singapore  much  as  Europeans  and 
Americans  regard  Paris— an  estimable  place  of 
consort,  and  scores  of  these  men  there  lead  a life 
not  based  on  the  simple  ideas  of  Charles  Wagner. 
Island  sultans  are  usually  as  numerous  in  Singa- 
pore as  princes  in  Cairo ; and  European  adepts  in 
equatorial  government  find  frequent  need  of  re- 
pairing to  the  gay  metropolis  of  the  Straits.  An 
interesting  potentate  frequently  seen  is  Rajah 
Brooke,  a cultivated  Englishman  who  is  philan- 
thropic despot  over  a slice  of  Borneo  twice  the 
area  of  England  and  Wales.  Sarawak,  his  coun- 
try, has  been  called  the  best  governed  tropical 
land  in  the  world.  Another  English  celebrity  af- 
fecting Singapore  is  Governor  Gueritz,  adminis- 
trator of  the  North  Borneo  Company,  destined, 
maybe,  to  become  as  profitable  as  the  East  India 
Company  of  old.  The  Sultan  of  Sulu  (not  the 
hero  of  George  Ade’s  comic  opera)  enjoys  a so- 
journ in  Singapore.  He  is  young,  wears  the  garb 
of  a Mohammedan  who  has  been  to  Mecca,  and  is 
not  displeased  by  the  stare  of  tourists.  The  Sul- 
tan of  Johore,  in  the  hands  of  money-lenders 
through  unfortunate  turf  ventures,  spends  as 
much  time  in  the  city  as  in  his  Malay  sultanate. 
A prince  of  the  Siamese  king’s  ministry,  in  Singa- 
pore to  bestow  orders  for  bridges  and  river  steam- 
ers, goes  nightly  to  witness  a feeble  production  of 

228 


HONG  KONG  HARBOR 


Island  Links 


“The  Girl  from  Kays,”  and  whistles  “Sammy” 
as  he  promenades  hotel  verandas. 

Down  at  the  quays  great  steamships  are  fed 
with  coal  by  Chinese  coolies  who  toil  silently  and 
expeditiously.  A Chinese  swell  is  on  the  pier  su- 
perintending the  lading  of  queer-looking  cases 
containing  birds’  nests,  consigned  to  epicures  in 
Hong  Kong  and  Canton.  The  Chinaman’s  great- 
est dainty  is  soup  made  from  glutinous  birds’ 
nests  found  in  Borneo  caves.  A single  case  of 
moderate  dimensions  contains  nests  to  the  value 
of  twelve  hundred  Mexican  dollars— at  least,  it  is 
insured  for  that  amount. 

Great  Britain’s  next  station  in  the  Far  East  is 
Hong  Kong,  likewise  an  island,  and  one  that  might 
claim  the  long  distance  championship  as  a rain- 
center.  Next  to  hills,  the  characterizing  feature 
of  Hong  Kong  is  moisture— represented  either  by 
rain  or  humidity.  The  Briton  professes  that  the 
climate  of  this  crown  colony  is  good ; but  for 
months  at  a stretch  his  clothing  has  to  be  bung- 
daily  in  the  open  air  to  keep  it  from  becoming 
water-logged,  and  everything  of  leather  has  to  be 
denuded  each  morning  of  green  mold.  At  the 
hotels  one’s  apparel  is  kept  in  a drying-room,  and 
issued  costume  at  a time  for  use. 

The  globe-trotter  reaching  Hong  Kong  in 
March  risks  irreparable  injury  to  his  temper,  un- 
less he  prefers  dripping  clouds  and  wet  feet  to 
warmth  and  sunshine.  Out  of  a fortnight  there 
may  be  a day  when  the  elements  will  be  accommo- 
dating enough  to  allow  the  glories  of  the  harbor 

231 


East  of  Suez 


to  be  seen  from  the  Peak,  and  two  pleasant  days 
in  the  fortnight  would  be  remarkable.  Official 
figures  show  that  the  average  March  has  but  twen- 
ty-nine and  a fraction  hours  of  sunshine.  Com- 
plain of  the  rains  and  the  patriotic  resident  will 
probably  remark:  “Rains!  These  are  not  rains— 
they  only  begin  in  June.”  Your  book  of  local  in- 
formation corroborates  the  resident’s  statement, 
for  you  may  read  that  March  ordinarily  has  a 
rainfall  of  but  three  and  a half  inches,  while  June 
shows  twenty,  and  August  twenty-eight.  On  the 
25th  of  August  in  1905  the  downpour  registered 
eleven  and  one-quarter  inches— this  almost  turned 
Hong  Kong  into  an  eastern  Venice.  November, 
December,  January  and  February  are  the  pleasant 
months,  statistically,  in  Hong  Kong. 

The  Briton  has  displayed  his  sturdiness  of  char- 
acter by  forcing  a home  in  Hong  Kong,  for  nature 
fashioned  the  north  shore  of  this  island  to  be  an 
abiding-place  for  birds  and  animals.  Adventur- 
ers from  the  British  Isles  have  won  a plateau  from 
the  sea  by  piling  and  filling  in,  and  by  executing 
engineering  feats  that  have  converted  a precipi- 
tous mountain  side  to  blossom  with  villa  sites  and 
roads  and  foot-paths  leading  to  them.  A railway 
scaling  the  mountain  height  at  a topsy-turvy  angle 
did  the  rest.  Hong  Kong  is  a splendid  example  of 
what  determined  men  possessed  of  the  colonizing 
spirit  may  accomplish.  The  founders  of  Venice 
did  no  more  in  the  lagoons  of  the  Adriatic.  A 
man  responsible  for  much  of  Hong  Kong’s  filling 
in  and  excavation  is  Sir  Paul  Chator,  a British 

232 


hong  kong's  mountainside 


♦ 


Island  Links 


subject  of  Armenian  birth,  gifted  to  an  unusual 
degree  with  foresight.  He  has  done  more  for  the 
colony  than  any  other  person— and  Hong  Kong 
has  made  him  a millionaire. 

The  legal  name  of  the  city  is  Victoria,  but  this 
fact  apparently  is  known  only  to  the  postmaster 
and  at  Government  House.  Were  a visitor  to 
speak  of  Victoria,  the  dweller  would  believe  that 
something  back  in  England,  or  in  Australia,  was 
meant.  When  China  ceded  the  rocky  isle  of  Hong 
Kong  to  Great  Britain  in  1842  it  was  the  haunt  of 
fislierfolk  and  pirates  prosecuting  their  callings  in 
the  estuary  of  the  Canton  River.  The  acquisition 
of  Hong  Kong  was  due  to  the  refusal  of  the  Chi- 
nese to  allow  British  traders  to  live  peaceably  at 
Canton.  Driven  out  of  the  city,  they  took  tempor- 
ary refuge  in  the  Portuguese  settlement  of  Ma- 
cao ; but,  being  pursued  by  Chinese  hostility,  the 
official  trade  superintendent  transferred  the  Eng- 
lish depot  to  Hong  Kong,  which  was  forthwith  oc- 
cupied by  a British  expeditionary  force,  and,  at 
the  end  of  the  Opium  War,  finally  ceded  to  Great 
Britain  by  the  treaty  of  Nankin.  The  name  “Hong 
Kong”  is  variously  interpreted,  but  the  generally 
accepted  meaning  is  “Fragrant  Streams.” 

Just  as  Singapore  guards  the  south  entrance 
into  the  China  Sea,  so  does  Hong  Kong,  fifteen 
hundred  miles  away,  guard  the  north.  On  the 
south  the  entrance  is  through  the  Straits  of  Mal- 
acca, on  the  north  trough  the  Straits  of  Formosa. 
Had  Great  Britain,  according  to  the  usual  custom 
of  war,  retained  possession  of  Manila,  which  she 

235 


East  of  Suez 


had  conquered  in  1762,  instead  of  giving  it  back  to 
Spain  at  the  end  of  the  Seven  Years’  War,  her 
hold  of  the  China  Sea  would  have  been  as  firm  to- 
day as  is  her  hold  of  the  Mediterranean.  As  the 
situation  now  stands,  the  acquisition  of  the  Phil- 
ippine Islands  gives  Uncle  Sam  a fortified  naval 
base  on  the  flank  of  the  British  line  of  communica- 
tions between  Singapore  and  Hong  Kong.  Based 
on  Manila,  and  given  the  possession  of  sufficient 
naval  force,  an  American  admiral  can  strike  right 
or  left,  compelling  his  opponents  to  fight  where  it 
best  suits  his  own  purposes.  England  and  Amer- 
ica are  fortunate  in  being  on  terms  of  complete 
international  amity,  but  none  the  less  has  the  con- 
quest of  the  Philippines  by  the  United  States  pro- 
foundly modified  the  strategical  conditions  as  they 
existed  in  the  Pacific  when  the  islands  belonged  to 
a weak  naval  power  like  Spain. 

Hong  Kong’s  population  and  traffic  double 
every  ten  years,  and  no  harbor  has  a greater  ton- 
nage. Were  Hong  Kong  a port  of  origin,  instead 
of  a port  of  call,  its  commercial  importance  would 
be  greater  than  that  of  London.  A few  years  ago 
the  British  Government  induced  China  to  lease  a 
slice  of  the  mainland  of  goodly  dimensions,  to  ac- 
commodate Hong  Kong’s  swelling  trade.  There, 
a mile  and  a half  across  the  harbor,  to-day  stand 
miles  of  modern  docks  and  warehouses,  and  ship- 
yards and  engine-building  works,  that  would  do 
credit  to  Tyne  or  Clyde.  This  addition  to  Hong 
Kong  is  called  Kowloon,  and  it  has  residential 
districts  that  range  well  into  the  hinterland. 

236 


Island  Links 


Hong  Kong’s  streets  are  among  the  most  inter- 
esting in  the  great  East,  for  they  strike  the  key  of 
true  cosmopolitanism.  Along  them  ’rickshaws 
pass  in  endless  procession,  electric  cars  roar,  and 
sedan-chairs  swing.  The  chair  borne  by  four  bear- 
ers provides  the  acme  of  transportation  in  fine 
weather.  Eighty  per  cent,  of  Hong  Kong’s  people 
are  Chinese,  and  to  this  multitude  the  human  con- 
tributions of  Europe  and  America  form  necessar- 
ily a thin  relief.  Extremely  picturesque  are  the 
compradore  and  taipan  in  costumes  of  the  richest 
of  silks,  more  so  than  is  the  poor  coolie  in  dirty 
short  trousers  and  jacket,  pigtail  coiled  for  con- 
venience about  the  head,  whose  face  is  none  too 
familiar  with  soap  and  water.  In  and  out  of  the 
ever-moving  multitude  glide  the  tall,  bright-eyed 
sons  of  India,  the  Sikhs,  who  are  everywhere  in 
the  East.  Soldiers  in  regimentals;  jack  tars  of 
many  nations ; policemen,  white,  yellow,  and  black, 
are  included  in  the  picture.  Here  is  the  somber 
Britisher  with  confident  stride  and  air  of  proprie- 
torship, there  the  unromantic  German  slowly  but 
surely  capturing  Oriental  trade.  Frenchmen  and 
Scandinavians  rub  shoulders  along  the  Queen’s 
Road  with  the  matter  of  fact  American  and  the 
dark  man  from  Italy ; whilst  now  and  then  a pecul- 
iar gait  or  unusual  costume  distinguishes  a South 
American  or  a son  of  the  Philippines.  Here,  in 
short,  within  this  congested  square  mile  of  the  Eu- 
ropean quarter  are  daily  to  be  picked  representa- 
tives of  the  world’s  nations.  A study  of  the  crowd 
is  an  education  in  itself. 


237 


East  of  Suez 


The  splendid  buildings  speak  of  commercial 
prosperity— banks,  shops,  offices  and  clubs. 
Nearly  every  structure  is  the  seat  of  prosperous 
commercial  ventures  in  Hong  Kong  and  China 
proper;  and  tiers  of  water-front  warehouses  lo- 
cally called  “godowns,”  are  filled  with  foodstuffs 
and  manufactures  that  in  time  will  be  distributed 
through  every  town  of  importance  in  the  Flowery 
Kingdom.  Hong  Kong  boasts  that  her  docks 
can  accommodate  the  largest  ships  afloat  (a  fact 
until  the  Minnesota  and  Dakota,  loaded  with 
American  flour,  vainly  sought  wharfage),  and  that 
she  possesses  the  largest  sugar  refinery  in  the 
world.  But  these  circumstances  are  subordinate 
to  the  British  government’s  real  interest  in  Hong 
Kong— to  make  it  the  base  of  naval  power  in 
Asia,  with  dockyards  and  repair-shops  equal  to 
any  demand,  and  with  coal-bins  stacked  with  the 
prerequisite  to  sea-power. 

The  horse  is  included  in  no  grouping  in  Hong 
Kong,  where  coolie  takes  its  place  as  bearer  of 
burdens  and  hauler  of  vehicles.  The  sights  of  the 
place  are  so  strange  and  interesting  that  a trav- 
eler is  sometimes  there  for  days  before  the  fact 
dawns  upon  his  vision  that  it  is  a city  innocent  of 
horse-flesh.  True,  there  are  the  runners  and  polo 
ponies  at  Happy  Valley  race-course.  Wherever  the 
Briton  plants  his  abiding-place,  there  the  horse 
and  dog  are  brought— but  in  Hong  Kong  the  for- 
mer requires  a deal  of  attention,  for  it  is  only  used 
in  making  a Briton’s  holiday.  The  race-course  is 
set  in  an  intervale,  and  has  cemeteries  overlooking 

238 


FORMER  “HIS  EXCELLENCY  THE  GOVERNOR”  OF  HONG  KONG 


Island  Links 


grand-stand  and  entrances.  A transplanted 
sportsman  whose  every  effort  to  name  a winning 
steed  at  a Happy  Valley  meeting  has  failed  sig- 
nally, finds  superabundance  of  food  for  introspec- 
tion as  he  runs  the  gauntlet  of  cemetery  portals  on 
the  way  back  to  the  city,  and  very  likely  indulges 
in  mental  speculation  as  to  the  purpose  in  giving 
the  name  of  Happy  Valley  to  a race-track  whose 
betting  ring  is  overshadowed  by  burial  grounds. 

The  “chit”  as  a moral  pitfall  is  more  potent  in 
Hong  Kong  than  in  India  or  other  Eastern  lands 
possessing  a sprinkling  of  Europeans.  A new- 
comer’s ears  hear  little  but  “chit.”  Every  sen- 
tence uttered  by  friends,  every  proposal  of  obse- 
quious native  merchant,  is  freighted  with  the  lit- 
tle word.  You  decide  at  last  to  cast  off  your  ig- 
norance and  be  of  the  elect— to  know  what  chit 
means  and  if  possible  become  a chitter.  Very  dis- 
appointed are  you  when  told  that  chit  is  simply 
Asian  for  memorandum,  in  popular  phrase,  an  “1 
0.  U.,”  hurriedly  penciled  and  given  in  lieu  of 
cash. 

Its  purpose?  Merely  to  pander  to  the  Euro- 
pean’s convenience;  to  differentiate  the  white  man 
from  brown  or  yellow,  by  placing  him  on  the  un- 
assailable pedestal  of  a person  of  honor. 

“This  chit  idea  is  great,”  says  the  newcomer. 
“I  don’t  load  my  pockets  down  with  money  any 
more.  When  I buy  a cigar  or  drink  I give  a chit, 
and  that  ’s  all  there  is  to  it.  These  Eastern  peo- 
ple are  away  ahead  of  us  in  more  ways  than  one.” 
And  he  hourly  signs  innocent  memoranda,  be- 


East  of  Suez 


cause  of  tlie  convenience.  At  hotel  and  club  a chit 
brings  what  he  wants,  it  sends  a basket  of  flowers 
to  a charming  woman,  produces  suits  of  clothing 
that  he  does  n’t  need,  even  pays  ’rickshaw  and 
chair  coolies. 

But  alas;  pay-day  comes  at  the  end  of  the 
month ! And  scheme  as  he  may,  the  newcomer 
cannot  solve  the  fiscal  problem  of  making  a hun- 
dred dollars  settle  three  hundred  dollars  of  debts. 
He  then  comprehends  that  the  insidious  chit  is 
loaded ; is  pregnant  with  the  disgrace  germ,  if  he 
cannot  raise  the  wherewithal  to  redeem  the  sheafs 
of  them  reposing  in  a dozen  tills— so  many  notes 
going  to  protest  with  every  tick  of  the  clock.  “I  ’ll 
write  home  for  funds,”  he  decides ; “but  how  am  I 
to  live  while  awaiting  the  remittance!”  By  giv- 
ing more  chits,  only.  He  does  this  with  a bold 
front  for  another  month  or  so,  and  is  doubly  in- 
solvent when  the  remittance  finally  comes  to  hand. 
Then  he  gives  still  more  chits,  and  awaits  another 
money  supply. 

Hong  Kong  is  filled  with  unfortunate  “remit- 
tance men,”  good  fellows  at  heart,  whose  downfall 
dates  from  their  introduction  to  the  chit.  A visi- 
tor can  read  no  announcement  more  pathetic  than 
that  conspicuously  displayed  in  the  waiting-rooms 
of  the  Kowloon  ferry,  saying  ‘ ‘ Positively  no  chits 
received”— and  this  ruthless  pronouncement  in 
connection  with  a trip  costing  but  the  equivalent 
of  three  American  cents ! 

There  is  commendable  practicability  in  the 
method  employed  by  large  hotels  in  the  East  for 

242 


Island  Links 


placing  patrons  in  a position  to  connect  with 
dishes  on  the  bill  of  fare  appealing  to  their  appe- 
tites. In  Hong  Kong  hotels,  where  young  China- 
men knowing  practically  no  English  are  employed 
as  waiters,  and  where  elaborate  lists  of  dishes  are 
the  order,  the  plan  is  indispensable.  It  is  this: 
Every  dish  is  indicated  on  the  margin  of  the  card 
by  a number,  and  instead  of  saying  to  the  waiter, 
“Bring  me  some  roast  beef,  mashed  potatoes  and 
a cup  of  tea,”  you  give  the  numbers  of  these  sev- 
eral articles,  or  point  to  them,— and  they  are 
fetched.  It  is  easy  enough  to  get  a second  helping, 
but  if  you  desire  your  meat  rare,  or  well  done,  or 
your  eggs  fried  on  both  sides,  then  you  have  good 
cause  for  cursing  the  confounding  of  tongues 
at  the  Tower  of  Babel.  A Hong  Kong  hotel  is  not 
a place  for  a person  predisposed  to  irritability. 

For  keen  realization  of  the  Far  East,  Hong 
Kong,  with  its  streets  of  Chinese  shops,  and  water 
front  massed  with  sampans,  affords  a full  and 
most  satisfying  opportunity. 


243 


CHAPTER  XII 


CANTON,  UNIQUE  CITY  OF  CHINA 

IT  is  a steamboat  journey  of  but  ninety  miles  up 
the  estuary  of  the  Pearl  River  from  Hong 
Kong  to  wonderful  Canton,  and  a traveler  in  Asia 
who  fails  to  see  the  city  that  is  the  commercial  cap- 
ital of  China  misses  something  that  he  may  think 
and  talk  of  the  remainder  of  his  life.  Historians 
profess  to  trace  the  origin  of  Canton  to  a period 
antedating  the  Christian  era,  when,  it  is  some- 
where recorded,  the  thirty-fourth  sovereign  of  the 
Chan  dynasty,  by  name  Nan  Wong,  who  ruled  for 
nearly  sixty  years,  was  on  the  Chinese  throne.  In 
those  days  the  city  bore  the  name  of  Nan-Woo- 
Ching,  meaning  “the  Martial  City  of  the  South,” 
and  was  encircled  by  a stockade  formed  of  bam- 
boos and  river  mud,  tradition  has  it.  Tradition 
additionally  tells  us  that  in  the  shadowy  past  Can- 
ton used  to  be  known  as  the  “City  of  the  Rams,” 
inasmuch  as  once  upon  a time  five  genii,  each 
mounted  on  a ram  carrying  ears  of  grain  in  the 
mouth,  rode  into  the  market-place  and  said  to  the 
wondering  people,  “May  famine  and  dearth  never 
visit  your  city.”  This  benevolent  sentiment  ut- 
tered, the  genii  are  said  to  have  instantly  van- 

244 


Canton,  Unique  City  of  China 

ished,  leaving  their  steeds  in  the  market-place,  and 
forthwith  these  were  turned  into  stone.  There  is 
to-day  a Temple  of  the  Five  Genii,  where  five 
clumsily  sculptured  rams  are  pointed  out  as  the 
identical  animals  that  once  were  flesh  and  blood. 

Passing  over  twenty  centuries  we  find  the 
metropolis  of  the  present  time,  with  its  two  mil- 
lion people,  the  most  satisfying,  fascinating,  and 
puzzling  city  in  the  Orient,  if  not  in  the  whole 
world.  Canton  with  its  agglomeration  of  a primi- 
tive existence,  is  surely  distinct  and  different  from 
any  other  city.  Its  dazzling  color  effect,  its  pile  of 
massive  gilding  in  grotesque  ornamentation,  its 
wonderful  sign-boards  in  bewildering  hieroglyph- 
ics, and  its  host  of  odd-looking  humanity— all  is  at 
variance  with  anything  the  traveler  has  before 
seen.  To  successfully  view  Canton  requires  some 
urbanity,  a wealth  of  patience,  and  a stomach  not 
readily  overthrown  by  gruesome  and  unusual 
sights.  And,  further,  the  visitor  must  never  for- 
get that  his  vision  is  looking  back  from  one  to  two 
thousand  years,  and  that  the  hordes  of  human  be- 
ings congesting  the  labyrinth  of  streets  not  seven 
feet  wide,  speak  of  a great  nation  as  it  was,  which 
to-day  is  the  oldest  living  nation  on  earth.  You, 
of  the  fast-marching  West,  are  viewing  at  its  foun- 
tainhead a race  for  which  the  word  “conserva- 
tive” was  most  likely  first  called  into  use.  It  was 
the  great  Li  Hung  Chang  who  stinginglv  rebuked 
some  patronizing  Englishmen  who  were  urging 
the  astute  old  statesman  to  advocate  certain  social 
reforms  in  China,  by  saying:  “Why,  we  Chinese 

245 


East  of  Suez 


look  upon  England  merely  as  an  interesting  exper- 
iment in  civilization,  wondering  where  you  ’ll  be 
five  hundred  years  hence.” 

The  only  impress  that  Europe  and  Christianity 
have  visibly  made  upon  Canton  is  the  French 
cathedral  of  the  twin  spires  that  you  see  near  the 
place  where  your  steamer  lands.  In  all  Canton 
there  is  not  a wheeled  vehicle,  street-car,  hotel,  or 
mouthful  of  food  appealing  to  the  convenience  or 
appetite  of  the  visitor  from  the  West;  and  apart 
from  your  own  coterie  of  sight-seers,  you  may  for 
days  be  about  the  streets  of  the  vast  city  without 
seeing  a person  wearing  the  habiliments  of  Eu- 
rope. That  section  of  Canton  known  as  Shameen, 
in  reality  an  island  suburb,  is  set  apart  under  con- 
cessions to  the  United  States  and  certain  Euro- 
pean powers,  and  the  consuls,  missionaries  and 
foreign  merchants  there  dwell  surrounded  by 
many  of  the  comforts  of  home. 

Few  venture  upon  leaving  Hong  Kong  for  Can- 
ton until  satisfying  reports  are  received  assuring 
that  no  immediate  outbreak  is  apprehended  of  the 
known  Cantonese  hatred  for  foreigners,  nor  until 
a vast  amount  of  letter-writing  and  telegraphing 
for  guide  and  chair-bearers  has  been  gone  through 
with,  and  the  steamboat  company  has  placed  the 
craft  of  their  line  at  your  command,  to  be  used  as 
hotels,  restaurants,  and  otherwise  as  bases  of  sup- 
plies. Confident  that  you  would  be  met  at  the 
landing  by  the  guide  of  whom  you  had  reassuring 
reports,  and  with  whom  you  believed  you  had  been 
in  correspondence,  a gorgeously-clad,  good-look- 

246 


TEMPLE  OF  THE  FIVE  HUNDRED  GENII,  CANTON 


Canton,  Unique  City  of  China 

ing  fellow  greets  you  at  your  state-room  door  on 
the  boat  before  your  ablutions  have  been  com- 
pleted, and  tells  you  politely  but  firmly  that  he  is 
to  be  your  guide.  His  card  says  he  is  “Ah  Cum 
John,”  which  is  not  that  of  the  guide  you  had  ex- 
pected to  meet  you,  and  you  meekly  remonstrate, 
until  the  potentate  tells  you  through  the  half- 
opened  door  that  you  will  see  Canton  under  his 
auspices  or  not  at  all.  “Why?”  “Because  I am 
proprietor  of  all  the  sedan-chairs  worth  riding  in, 
and  employ  every  good  coolie;  and,  besides,  Ah 
Cum,  my  father,  showed  Canton  to  Rudyard  Kip- 
ling twenty-five  years  ago.  I ’m  the  third  son  of 
Ah  Cum,  and  my  family  does  all  the  guiding  that 
is  done  in  Canton— nobody  else  speaks  any  Eng- 
lish. ’ ’ 

Whatever  your  degree  of  objection  to  monopo- 
lies, a single  reason  enumerated  by  the  autocrat 
seeking  to  enter  your  employ  is  sufficient  to  swing 
you  into  a feeble  acquiescence,  for,  to  tell  the 
truth,  you  are  not  impressed  favorably  by  the  mob 
of  jostling,  shoving  yellow  humanity  on  shore, 
naked  to  the  waist,  who  seem  to  be  accentuating 
with  menacing  gestures  their  demands  upon  your 
patronage.  You  wonder  how  long  a white  man 
can  be  on  shore  without  having  his  throat  cut,  and 
reason  that  if  Ah  Cum  John  can  bully  a sovereign- 
born  American  into  accepting  him  as  guide, 
when  you  had  wanted  somebody  else,  why  is  he  not 
the  very  man  to  control  the  passions  of  a fanatical 
Chinese  mob?  His  administrative  ability  im- 
presses by  the  manner  in  which  he  directs  affairs 

249 


East  of  Suez 


from  the  instant  his  control  is  confessed  by  your 
party  of  seven  native  Americans,  and  after 
breakfast  this  born  leader  sets  forth  at  the  head 
of  the  timid  pleiad  longing  to  explore  the  great 
human  warren  of  China— the  thugs  of  the  river 
bank  are  now  your  bearers  and  devoted  subjects, 
four  to  a chair,  and  countless  assistants  and  rela- 
tives trail  at  the  end  of  the  procession. 

The  cavalcade  attracts  good-natured  attention 
from  shopkeepers  drawn  to  the  fronts  of  their 
stalls  by  the  yelping  of  forty  lusty  Mongol  throats, 
commanding  all  and  sundry  wayfarers  to  allow 
honorable  visitors  to  pass.  So  narrow  are  the 
filth-smeared  streets  that  a sight-seer  might  help 
himself  at  will  from  shops  on  either  side  of  the 
way.  Hundreds  of  messes  stewing  over  braziers 
in  the  thoroughfare  have  to  be  moved,  and  now 
and  then  the  bearers  of  a native  dignitary  slide  in- 
to a conveniently  wide  place  that  the  procession  of 
“foreign  devils”  may  not  be  inconvenienced.  But 
a mandarin,  in  his  palanquin  and  preceded  by  an 
orderly  mounted  on  a short-legged  pony,  and 
guarded  front  and  rear  by  forty  wicked-looking 
soldiers  armed  with  carbines,  has  precedence  so 
instantly  accorded  him  that  the  clients  of  Ah 
Cum’s  third  son  are  almost  precipitated  sideways 
into  a row  of  shops.  The  mighty  official  passes 
without  so  much  as  casting  a glance  of  compliment 
at  the  women  of  the  party,  thereby  making  it  evi- 
dent that  Canton  mandarins  have  a code  of  de- 
portment peculiarly  their  own. 

The  products  of  every  section  of  Asia  are  said 

250 


Canton,  Unique  City  of  China 

to  be  heaped  high  in  the  warehouses  of  this  great 
mart  of  Southern  China;  but  the  tourist  sees 
naught  of  these.  What  he  views  from  his  sedan- 
chair  is  thousands  of  shops  but  little  larger  than 
catacomb  cells,  wherein  everything  from  straw 
sandals  for  street  coolies  to  jade  bracelets  for  the 
richly  endowed  is  offered  for  sale.  Preserved 
from  theft  and  fire  in  Canton’s  godowns  and 
pawnshops  are  stored  enough  fabrics  of  silk,  art- 
embroideries,  and  carvings  in  ivory  and  teak- 
wood,  to  cause  a person  of  average  taste  to  lose 
his  mind,  could  they  be  paraded  for  his  benefit; 
and  a collector  would  find  it  difficult  to 
preserve  solvency,  were  the  treasures  of 
the  sliabby-looking  warehouses  proffered  for 
sale.  Unusually  repugnant  are  the  stalls 

where  food  is  vended,  for  their  wares  are 
prepared  in  a manner  making  it  easy  for  the  visi- 
tor to  forget  that  he  ever  possessed  an  appetite.  A 
hundred  times  as  you  are  borne  through  Canton’s 
streets  your  chair  escapes  by  only  a few  feet  or 
inches  rows  of  cooked  ducks  and  pigs  that  seem 
to  have  been  finally  varnished  to  make  them  ap- 
peal to  the  native  epicure.  Here  and  there  you  ob- 
serve strange  hunks  of  meat  held  together  by  a 
wisp  of  straw  that  your  guide  tells  you  with  im- 
mobile countenance  are  rat  hams,  and  in  sundry 
shops  your  ready  eye  thereafter  detects  tiny  dried 
carcasses  that  can  only  be  rats.  Let  it  be  said  in 
fairness  to  the  sights  of  Canton  that  the  display  of 
vegetables  is  attractive  enough  to  turn  your 
thoughts  to  the  dietary  benefits  of  vegetarianism. 

251 


East  of  Suez 


You  early  perceive  that  Ah  Cum  John  is  many 
kinds  of  a “boss”  by  the  way  he  takes  command 
of  the  shops  at  which  he  deigns  to  halt  his  caravan. 
All  are  charmed  with  the  jewelry  fabricated  by  the 
workers  in  kingfishers’  feathers,  and  make  liberal 
selections.  But  you  are  not  permitted  to  pay  the 
merchant  with  whom  you  have  made  a bargain, 
for  John  says,  “You  pay  him  nothing,  you  pay 
me  to-night  for  everything”— and  the  purchases 
are  carried  away  in  his  sumptuous  palanquin.  Pic- 
tures executed  on  rice-paper  are  next  acquired  on 
the  same  terms;  then  a cargo  of  daggers  and 
swords  with  handles  and  scabbards  covered  with 
shark  skin  is  secured  after  a brief  dicker.  When 
you  buy  a carved  ivory  ball  representing  years  of 
labor  by  a genius,  or  a dozen  bolts  of  Chee-fu  silk, 
the  price  of  which  may  be  several  hundred  Mexi- 
can dollars,  John  insists  that  you  are  entitled  to  a 
cumsha  of  value.  The  merchant  makes  obeisance 
and  prqffers  you  a paper-cutter  or  a box  of  can- 
died ginger.  John  resents  this  parsimony  and 
says  “Not  good  enough.”  He  goes  then  behind 
the  counter  and  pulls  down  a mandarin  coat 
weighted  with  embroidery,  or  maybe  an  intricately 
carved  puff-box,  saying  “The  merchant  gives  you 
this  with  his  compliments.”  Everything  is 
dumped  in  the  gorgeous  palanquin,  and  your  spoli- 
ation dash  through  commercial  Canton  is  resumed. 

Between  purchases,  you  are  taken  to  see  innu- 
merable temples  and  other  objects  of  interest,  as 
they  fall  in  your  path.  The  Temple  of  the  Five 
Hundred  Genii  is  made  amusing  by  the  scion  of 

252 


CITY  OF  BOATS,  CANTON,  WHERE  GENERATIONS  ARE  BORN  AND  DIE 


Canton,  Unique  City  of  China 

the  house  of  Ah  Cum  explaining  that  a figure 
sculptured  with  hat  of  European  pattern  is  “Joss 
Pau  Low.”  As  a reader  you  are  aware  that  it  is 
the  effigy  of  Marco  Polo,  the  intrepid  Italian  trav- 
eler supposed  to  have  been  the  first  European  to 
have  penetrated  ancient  China.  The  water-clock, 
elsewhere,  is  found  to  be  out  of  order  and  not  run- 
ning, and  you  assume  that  the  water  of  the  Pearl 
River  is  too  muddy  for  delicate  mechanisms.  The 
execution  ground  is  found  to  be  merely  a quadri- 
lateral of  vacant  land,  employed  by  native  potters 
when  not  required  by  the  State  when  a group  of 
criminals  is  to  be  officially  put  to  death. 

The  guide  is  regretful  that  your  visit  is  a few 
days  too  late  for  you  to  see  five  men  beheaded  in 
as  many  minutes.  Employing  a chair-coolie  as  a 
lay  figure,  John  manages  to  give  a satisfactory 
description  of  the  modus  operandi  of  a decapita- 
tion, and  you  let  it  go  at  that.  A stalwart  native  is 
then  introduced  as  the  official  headsman,  and  this 
functionary  promptly  tries  to  sell  the  lieavy- 
bladed  sword  with  which  he  says  he  struck  off  five 
heads  earlier  in  the  week.  Probably  three  hun- 
dred malefactors  are  annually  put  to  death  on  this 
spot,  and  it  is  said  that  the  public  executioner  has 
been  known  to  sell  twice  that  number  of  swords  in 
a year.  Now  and  again  a loaferisli  policeman  is 
seen,  nearly  always  leaning  against  a building  or 
finding  support  from  the  angle  of  a deep-set  door. 
Most  of  the  police  wear  sandals  and  straw  hats, 
and  carry  long  batons  and  revolvers;  but  there 
is  no  sameness  of  apparel  or  armament  among 

255 


East  of  Suez 


these  guardians  of  the  peace,  attested  by  their 
wearing  only  a portion  of  their  uniform  at  a time. 
The  Cantonese  believe  their  police  are  equipped 
and  dressed  in  strict  accord  with  the  “finest”  of  a 
great  city  in  America. 

On  the  way  to  that  section  of  the  city  where 
Cantonese  of  high  and  low  degree  are  laid  away 
after  death,  we  encounter  a returning  funeral 
party  that  made  a curious  procession,  and  one 
stretching  to  inordinate  length.  In  front  was  a 
ragamuffin  corps  of  drummers  and  men  extracting 
ear-racking  noises  from  metal  instruments  that 
looked  like  flageolets,  but  were  not.  Twenty  or 
thirty  bedraggled  Buddhist  priests  in  pairs 
trotted  behind,  proving  by  their  individual 
gaits  that  in  China  there  is  no  union  of 
religion  and  music.  Interspersed  in  the 

marching  medley  were  a dozen  or  more 
gaudily  painted  platforms  with  pole  handles, 
carried  by  coolies  in  the  way  that  chairs  are  borne. 
Each  platform  displayed  a layout  of  varnished 
pigs  with  immovably  staring  eyes,  plates  of  un- 
cooked strips  of  fish,  and  decorative  objects  sug- 
gesting place  in  a well-to-do  Chinese  home.  Every 
fifty  yards  or  so  a mustached  official  of  uncertain 
rank  was  mounted  on  a Tartary  pony,  and  at  the 
end  of  the  column  a coolie  loped  along  bearing 
across  his  naked  shoulders  the  deceased’s  Yankee- 
made  bicycle.  No  student  of  foreign  conditions 
could  ask  more  striking  evidence  that  China  was  at 
last  “waking  up,”  was  heeding  the  influences  of 
Western  civilization,  surely.  The  funeral  party 
suggested  perfunctory  pomp  and  display,  and 

256 


Canton,  Unique  City  oi  China 

gave  not  a suggestion  of  bereavement— and  that  it 
was,  for  every  person  in  the  cortege  was  hired  for 
the  occasion.  Half  the  food  had  been  left  at  the 
tomb  for  the  departed  in  his  spirit  form;  the  re- 
mainder was  to  be  devoured  by  the  mercenary 
mourners  when  the  procession  broke  up  at  the 
door  of  the  home  from  which  the  corpse  had  been 
carried. 

Ah  Cum  John’s  clients  lunch  in  the  renowned 
Five-Story  Pagoda,  rising  from  the  city  wall  to 
an  elevation  that  spreads  Canton  at  its  feet;  but 
by  the  time  one  reaches  the  building  he  is  satiated 
with  views  and  wants  nothing  but  food.  The  Chi- 
cago “air-tiglits”  and  bottled  beers  and  table- 
waters  fetched  from  the  steamer  are  relished  to 
the  full  by  appetites  not  always  satisfied  by  the 
culinary  achievements  of  a Delmonico. 

Travelers  insist  that  Canton  is  more  essentially 
Chinese  in  an  educational  sense  than  any  other 
city  in  China.  Public  speech  in  Hong  Kong  re- 
flects the  control  of  Britain,  and  in  Shanghai 
popular  opinion  is  held  to  be  tainted  with  German 
or  British  opinion.  At  Pekin  the  game  of  diplo- 
macy is  played  too  consummately  to  allow  an  ex- 
pressed utterance  to  have  any  national  signifi- 
cance, for  the  capital  is  looked  upon  as  a city  eddy- 
ing with  cross  currents  and  rival  influences.  Con- 
sequently, the  pulse  of  the  great  Flowery  King- 
dom, with  its  more  than  four  hundred  million  peo- 
ple, can  best  be  taken  at  Canton,  for  the  native 
press  and  native  scholars  there  say  frankly  what 
they  believe. 

Cantonese  opinion  is  potential  because  the  capi- 

257 


East  of  Suez 


tal  city  of  the  great  Kwang-tung  province  is  rec- 
ognized as  the  center  of  national  learning,  where 
scholarship  is  prized  above  riches.  No  Canton 
youth  who  aims  at  the  first  social  order  thinks  of 
setting  himself  to  make  money;  to  enter  the  ser- 
vice of  the  government  is  his  object,  and  to  achieve 
this  he  studies  literature.  There  is  practically  no 
barrier  in  China  to  becoming  a “literate,”  and 
the  classification  means  all  that  the  word  “gentle- 
man” can  in  Europe.  For  this  and  other  reasons 
thousands  of  men  in  Canton  wear  horn-rimmed 
spectacles,  look  wise,  and  discuss  mundane  affairs 
in  a manner  brooking  no  contention.  The  literary 
bureaucracy  of  Canton  wields  a mighty  influence 
in  the  affairs  of  the  nation,  it  is  insisted.  A mem- 
ber of  this  class  may  not  be  able  to  do  the  sim- 
plest sum  in  arithmetic  without  the  assistance  of 
his  counting-machine,  but  he  may  be  able  to  write 
an  essay  on  the  meanings  of  ideographs,  repro- 
duce a trimetrical  classic,  or  quote  the  philosophic 
works  of  Confucius  and  the  Book  of  Mencius  until 
you  grow  faint  from  listening. 

Once  every  three  years  Canton  teems  with 
men,  young  and  old,  who  have  gathered  to  compete 
for  academic  degrees.  Any  one  save  the  son  of  a 
barber,  an  actor,  or  the  keeper  of  a brothel,  may 
enter  the  list,  provided  he  possesses  the  certificate 
of  a high  school.  A certain  part  of  the  city  not  de- 
manded by  business  or  residential  purposes  is  des- 
ignated as  the  Examination  Hall,  where  10,616 
cells  or  compartments  are  built  of  brick  and  wood. 
These  cubicles,  six  by  eight  feet  square,  are  ar- 

258 


Canton,  Unique  City  of  China 

ranged  in  rows,  like  cattle-pens  at  an  American 
agricultural  fair.  Placed  side  by  side  they  would 
extend  eight  miles.  These  cells  have  no  furnish- 
ing whatever,  save  a plank  to  serve  as  desk  and 
bed.  The  night  before  the  examination  is  to  be- 
gin the  student  is  searched,  and  with  writing  ma- 
terials and  provisions  sufficient  for  three  days,  is 
shut  in  his  cell.  This  is  repeated  three  times,  mak- 
ing the  examination  extend  to  nine  days.  From 
sunrise  to  sunset  no  candidate  is  permitted  to  rise 
from  his  seat,  and  if  one  be  taken  ill  and  carried 
out,  he  cannot  return  for  that  contest.  It  is  said 
that  a few  of  the  old  men  succumb  to  the  strain  at 
each  examination. 

The  theses  or  essays  of  but  eighty-three  of  the 
competitors  can  be  accepted,  and  the  fortunate 
ones  are  rewarded  by  the  Bachelor  of  Arts  degree. 
In  time  these  compete  near  Pekin  for  a “Doctor” 
degree— and  if  abundantly  rich,  the  successful 
scholar  may  bribe  his  way  to  official  employment, 
say  persons  intimately  knowing  the  customs  of 
China.  Those  who  pass  the  final  degree  become 
members  of  what  is  termed  the  Hon  Lum  College, 
and  this  furnishes  China  with  her  councilors,  dis- 
trict rulers,  and  examiners  of  scholarships  in  all 
the  provinces— at  least  in  theory.  The  fortunate 
man  standing  at  the  head  of  the  list  in  the  great 
examination  near  Pekin  receives  the  title  of  Chong 
Yuen,  and  is  termed  “the  greatest  scholar  in  the 
world.”  The  entire  empire  reveres  him,  and,  tak- 
ing into  consideration  the  number  of  the  examina- 
tions he  has  stood,  he  should  be  respected,  if  not 

259 


East  of  Suez 


for  erudition,  for  his  tenacity  of  purpose  and  the 
possession  of  a marvelous  constitution.  But  it  is 
asserted  that  this  “greatest  scholar”  is  invariably 
a millionaire  and  a Manchu. 

Even  the  “literate”  failing  to  secure  appoint- 
ment to  public  office  has  certain 'valued  exemptions 
and  prerogatives.  When  he  fulminates  against 
the  Pekin  government  or  against  the  acts  of  an 
overbearing  viceroy,  his  words  are  attentively  lis- 
tened to  and  carry  weight.  Besides,  the  horn-rim- 
med spectacles  give  him  a local  standing  envied  by 
every  man  who  toils  or  has  to  do  with  business.  In 
Canton  and  other  cities  of  China,  standing  before 
many  of  the  larger  and  pretentious  houses,  are  or- 
namental “literary  poles,”  and  these  are  always 
in  pairs  and  generally  show  respectable  decay. 
When  newly  erected  they  are  painted  in  colors  ac- 
cording to  the  rank  of  the  family— white  for  a pri- 
vate citizen,  red  for  a civil  functionary,  and  blue 
for  the  army.  A mast  having  a single  row  of 
brackets  a fewT  feet  from  the  top  means  the  degree 
of  Ku  Yan,  equivalent  to  our  M.  A.,  and  called  in 
China  the  degree  of  Promoted  Men ; the  degree  of 
Entered  Scholar,  nearly  equivalent  to  our  LL.D., 
called  Tsun  Sze,  is  represented  by  two  rows  of 
brackets;  and  the  highest  degree  attainable,  Hon 
Lum,  is  announced  by  three  rows  of  brackets,  lo- 
cally termed  the  “Forest  of  Pencils.”  The  pro- 
jecting brackets  make  admirable  perches  for  pi- 
geons and  other  domesticated  birds.  As  the  family 
and  not  the  individual  is  the  basis  of  the  custom, 
the  masts  are  always  erected  in  front  of  the  ances- 

260 


EXAMINATION  BOOTHS,  CANTON 


Canton,  Unique  City  of  China 

tral  home,  although  the  distinguished  scholar  may 
live  miles  away.  The  poles  are  never  repaired  or 
replaced  unless  some  other  member  of  the  family 
acquires  academic  honors.  China  has  no  custom 
more  poetic  than  the  indicating  of  an  abode  from 
which  a scholar  has  emerged. 

While  it  is  easy  to  admit  the  erudition  of  the 
Chinese  in  their  own  language,  the  tourist  swung 
through  Canton’s  streets  perceives  from  his  se- 
dan-chair many  signs  displayed  to  catch  the  eye  of 
the  foreigner  that  prove  the  English  schoolmaster 
to  be  absent.  To  read  such  announcements  as 
“Chinese  and  Japanese  Curious,”  “Blackwood 
Furnitures,”  “Meals  at  All  Day  and  Night,”  and 
“Steam  Laundry  & Co.”  provoke  a titter  in  a city 
where  you  believe  yourself  to  be  an  unwelcome  vis- 
itor. It  is  obvious  that  the  scholars  of  China  are 
not  reduced  to  the  straits  of  becoming  sign- 
painters. 

The  greatest  of  all  Canton  sights  is  undeniably 
that  of  life  on  the  boats  along  the  river  front,  pen- 
etrating every  creek,  and  extending  along  the 
paddy  fields  above  and  below  the  great  city.  There 
has  never  been  a census  of  this  “floating  popula- 
tion,” but  it  is  estimated  that  more  than  three  hun- 
dred thousand  Cantonese  have  no  other  homes  but 
the  junks,  sampans,  “flower  boats”  and  “snake 
boats,”  upon  which  they  are  literally  born,  reared, 
married,  and  die.  Lining  both  sides  of  the  river, 
extending  into  Shameen  Creek,  the  sampans  are 
everywhere.  They  ferry  people  across  the  stream 
or  convey  them  wherever  they  wish  to  go  in  the 

12  263 


East  ot  Suez 


neighborhood,  carry  light  cargoes  of  fuel,  food,  or 
merchandise,  deliver  packages,  and  do  a thousand 
and  one  services  of  the  “odd-job”  order.  A sam- 
pan nearly  always  houses  an  entire  family,  and 
is  rowed  by  the  father  and  mother.  Beneath  the 
round  covering  amidships  the  woman  conducts  the 
domestic  affairs  of  the  family  with  a cleverness 
that  is  remarkable,  and  for  cleanliness  it  may  be 
said  that  the  Canton  sampan  is  equal  to  any  abid- 
ing-place on  shore.  The  cooking  is  done  forwards 
over  a “fire-box,”  flowering  plants  frequently  are 
placed  in  the  boat’s  stern,  and  within  the  cabin  in- 
cense sticks  may  nearly  always  be  seen  burning 
before  the  family  idol.  A mother  ties  very  young 
children  to  the  deck  by  a long  cord,  while  older 
children  romp  at  large  with  a bamboo  float  fast- 
ened about  their  bodies,  which  serves  at  once  for 
clothing  and  life-preserver.  It  is  a common  sight 
to  see  sampans  propelled  up  and  down  stream  by 
women,  each  rower  having  an  infant  strapped  to 
her  back.  The  good  behavior  of  the  babies  of  the 
sampan  flotilla  is  always  appreciated  by  visiting 
mothers  whose  nurse-maids  at  home  have  difficulty 
in  keeping  their  young  from  crying  their  lungs 
out. 

The  “flower  boats,”  moored  a mile  or  two  below 
the  business  part  of  Canton’s  foreshore,  are  the 
antithesis  of  the  sampans,  for  they  cater  to  a pleas- 
ure-loving class,  to  men  and  women  possessing 
wobbly  morals,  who  love  good  dinners  and  suppers 
and  a game  of  fan-tan  without  too  much  publicity, 
with  singing  and  dancing  as  adjuncts.  In  build 


Canton,  Unique  City  of  China 

these  craft  are  like  the  house-boats  of  the  Thames, 
and  the  custom  of  tricking  them  out  with  flowering- 
plants  suggests  the  scene  at  Henley  during  re- 
gatta week.  Practically  all  the  vice  that  a traveler 
learns  of  during  a visit  to  Canton  is  confined  to  the 
flower  boats,  and  their  floral  appellation  comes 
from  the  reputed  attractiveness  of  the  sirens  dwell- 
ing upon  them.  The  boats  are  moored  side  by 
side  in  long  rows,  with  planks  leading  from  one  to 
another.  Prices  on  the  boats  are  always  high,  and 
the  native  voluptuary  pays  extravagantly  and  the 
foreigner  ruinously  whenever  he  devotes  an  even- 
ing to  the  floral  fleet.  By  night  the  boats  are  gor- 
geous with  their  mirrors  and  myriad  lamps  alight, 
and  blackwood  tables  and  stools  inlaid  with  moth- 
er-of-pearl ; but  by  the  light  of  day  they  look  taw- 
dry to  the  point  of  shabbiness. 

To  a person  interested  in  marine  construction, 
especially  one  hailing  from  a land  where  steam 
has  supplanted  sail-power,  and  where  gasolene 
and  other  inexpensive  motors  have  made  rowing 
almost  obsolete,  the  Pearl  River  “hot-foot”  boats, 
so  called  by  Europeans,  are  intensely  interesting. 
These  craft  connect  Whampoa  and  other  out-lying 
towns  with  Canton,  run  in  and  out  of  rivers,  and 
carry  passengers, freight, and  sometimes  themails. 
They  are  of  fairly  good  lines,  but  are  propelled  by 
huge  stern-wheels,  and  the  motive  power  is  con- 
tributed by  from  ten  to  twenty  barebacked  and 
perspiring  coolies  running  up  a treadmill  that 
occupies  as  much  room  amidships  as  boiler  and 
engine  might.  When  the  taskmaster  urges  the 


East  of  Suez 


coolies  to  do  their  best,  one  of  these  “ hot-foot” 
boats  chugs  along  in  calm  water  at  a five-knot 
gait,  but  ordinarily  three  knots  an  hour  is  the  nor- 
mal speed. 

On  the  left  bank  of  the  river  and  close  to  Can- 
ton is  a large  leper  village,  where  all  native  craft 
approaching  the  city  have  to  pay  a “Leper  toll.” 
If  this  is  done  as  soon  as  the  vessel  reaches  the 
suburb  the  head  leper  gives  a pass  which  franks 
the  ship  through ; without  this,  any  of  the  numer- 
ous lepers  are  able  to  demand  a fee,  which  has  to 
be  paid,  otherwise  the  junk  would  be  surrounded 
by  these  people  and  all  work  brought  to  a stand- 
still. 


266 


CHAPTER  XIII 


MACAO,  THE  MONTE  CARLO  OF  THE  FAR  EAST 

PRETTIER  marine  journey  than  from  Can- 


ton to  Macao,  is  not  possible  in  the  Orient, 
and  it  is  of  only  eighty  miles  and  accomplished  by 
daylight  with  convenient  hours  of  departure  and 
arrival. 

As  on  all  passenger-carrying  craft  plying  the 
great  estuary  having  Hong  Kong  and  Macao  for 
its  base  and  Canton  its  apex,  you  find  the  native 
passengers  on  your  boat  confined  below  the  deck 
whereon  the  state-rooms  and  dining  saloon  of  Eu- 
ropean travelers  are  located,  and  you  perceive 
racks  of  Mausers  and  cutlasses  at  convenient 
points  of  this  upper  deck.  To  American  eyes  it  is 
novel  to  see  every  stairway  closed  by  a grated  iron 
door,  and  a man  armed  with  a carbine  on  your  side 
of  each  of  these  barriers.  You  perceive  on  the 
main  deck  three  or  four  hundred  Chinamen  of  the 
coolie  class,  some  playing  card  games,  others 
Smoking  metal  pipes  with  diminutive  bowls,  but 
most  of  them  slumbering  in  a variety  of  grotesque 
attitudes.  None  of  these  Mongols  who  observe 
your  curiosity  seems  to  hold  any  feeling  of  resent- 
ment for  the  effective  separation  of  the  races, 


267 


East  of  Suez 


which  places  him,  the  native  of  the  land,  in  a posi- 
tion that  might  be  called  equivocal. 

The  English  skipper  and  his  Scotch  engineer, 
who  take  the  seats  of  honor  when  tiffin  is  served, 
respond  willingly  to  your  appeal  for  an  explana- 
tion of  the  doors  of  bar-iron  and  the  display  of 
weapons— every  first-class  passenger  always  asks 
the  question,  and  on  every  trip  the  British  seafar- 
ers tell  the  story  of  Chinese  piracy  as  practised 
up  to  comparatively  recent  times  in  the  great  es- 
tuary having  a dozen  or  more  names. 

And  an  interesting  tale  it  is,  for  it  recounts 
deeds  of  the  sea  quite  as  audacious  and  high- 
handed as  anything  performed  on  land  by  Jesse 
James  and  his  stage-coach  bandits.  Up  to  fifteen 
or  eighteen  years  ago  the  estuary  bristled  with 
Chinese  pirates,  and  wherever  native  fishermen 
and  sailors  foregathered,  at  Hong  Kong,  Canton 
or  Macao,  schemes  for  liolding-up  and  sacking 
steamers  carrying  bullion  and  valuable  merchan- 
dise were  hatched  with  a frequency  that  gave  a 
phase  to  local  commerce  that  was  anything  but 
comforting,  and  more  than  one  brave  Yankee  or 
British  sailor  went  to  his  death  fighting  yellow 
thugs  against  overwhelming  odds.  The  public  de- 
capitation of  a handful  of  these  murderers  ap- 
peared to  place  no  check  on  the  outlawry. 

Once  a Canton-bound  steamer,  carrying  the 
mails  and  a considerable  amount  of  specie,  had 
her  progress  obstructed  by  two  junks  that  wil- 
fully forced  her  into  shoal  water.  In  the  confu- 
sion that  followed  the  grounding,  a score  of  cool- 

268 


PRINCIPAL  SECTION  OF  MACAO 


Macao,  Monte  Carlo  of  the  East 

ies,  who  up  to  that  moment  had  been  regarded  as 
honest  deck  passengers,  rushed  to  the  pilot-house 
and  engine-room  and  murdered  every  white  man 
on  board.  Practically  everything  of  value  was 
then  transferred  to  the  junks,  now  conveniently 
alongside,  and  the  spoil  was  landed  at  such  points 
in  the  estuary  that  made  official  detection  well- 
nigh  impossible.  This  is  but  a sample  of  the 
stories  you  may  hear  while  yellow-faced  China- 
men are  serving  your  food,  and  it  must  be  con- 
fessed that  it  affords  a sense  of  confidence  to 
know  that  the  grates  of  the  stairways  are  actually 
locked,  and  that  the  rifles  of  the  guards  are  loaded 
with  ball  ammunition.  As  he  sips  his  black  coffee 
at  the  termination  of  luncheon,  the  captain  as- 
sures you  that  until  within  a few  years  a skipper 
was  suspicious  alike  of  every  native  deck  passen- 
ger and  every  fishing  junk  indicating  a disposi- 
tion to  claim  more  than  its  share  of  the  channel ; 
“but  the  old  days  in  China,”  he  concludes,  “have 
disappeared  forever,  and  piracy  as  an  occupation 
has  passed  with  them.” 

Getting  back  to  the  forepart  of  the  ship,  the 
views  on  land  and  sea  are  engrossingly  interest- 
ing. On  the  shores  of  the  mainland  and  on  an  oc- 
casional island  are  ancient  forts  which  revive 
memories  of  interesting  experiences  of  the  white 
man’s  invasion  of  the  Celestial  kingdom,  and  the 
foreground  of  rice-fields  is  backed  by  intermin- 
able groves  of  mulberry-trees  explaining  China’s 
preeminence  as  a silk  producer.  Numerous  vil- 
lages are  passed,  and  from  them  the  traveler  ob- 

271 


East  of  Suez 


tains  a fair  idea  of  the  rustic  life  of  China.  Now 
and  again  a pagoda  is  visible,  crowning  an  eleva- 
tion, and  recalling  childhood’s  school-book  illus- 
trations. You  jump  at  the  convenient  conclusion 
that  these  structures  of  from  six  to  ten  stories  had 
to  do  with  the  religion  of  the  country,  which  sur- 
mise is  erroneous,  for  the  towers  were  reared  to 
guard  the  geomantic  properties  of  their  respective 
neighborhoods,  and  in  reality  are  relics  of  a by- 
gone age  of  superstition. 

The  pioneer  European  settlement  of  the  Far 
East— Macao  — is  at  last  in  sight,  and  it  presents 
immediately  a visual  contrast  to  Canton,  by  rea- 
son of  its  picturesque  situation.  There  is  some- 
thing about  the  promontory  that  takes  you  back 
to  Southern  Europe,  to  the  summer  sea  and  the 
shores  of  the  Mediterranean,  perhaps  to  a brightly 
situated  fishing  port  of  the  littoral  of  the  Riviera. 
As  the  vessel  rounds  the  cape  and  comes  to  anchor 
in  the  pretty  crescent  formed  by  the  Praia  Grande, 
flanked  by  terraced  houses  colored  with  minor 
tints  of  blue  and  yellow,  you  know  instantly  that 
this  stranded  Eastern  rainbow  is  Monte  Carlo— 
no,  the  Oriental  equivalent  of  the  beauty-spot  of 
Latin  Europe. 

Macao  is  a little  place  large  with  history,  in 
fact  is  an  atom  of  Europe  almost  lost  to  public 
gaze  by  the  vastness  of  Asia,  and  as  much  a part 
of  the  kingdom  of  Portugal  as  Lisbon  itself.  As 
the  most  enterprising  maritime  and  trading  nation 
of  the  sixteenth  century,  the  Portuguese  were  the 
first  to  sail  the  Eastern  seas,  the  first  to  open  up 

272 


Macao,  Monte  Carlo  of  the  East 

commercial  relations  between  Europe  and  the 
great  empire  of  China,  and  holding  the  monopoly 
of  all  Oriental  trade  until  the  end  of  the  eighteenth 
century.  Owing  to  the  prospect  of  increased  gain, 
following  on  this  European  invasion,  the  waters  of 
the  Pearl  River  estuary  soon  became  infested  with 
pirates,  which  the  Portuguese  magnanimously  as- 
sisted the  Chinese  government  to  subdue,  and,  in 
return,  it  is  recorded,  received  in  1557  the  cession 
of  the  rocky  peninsula  on  which  the  Portuguese 
colony  now  stands.  More  than  once  Portugal  had 
to  maintain  her  rights  by  recourse  to  arms,  but 
the  colony  has  remained  Portuguese  without  inter- 
ruption for  more  than  three  hundred  and  fifty 
years,  and  is  a hoary  patriarch  beside  infan- 
tile British  Hong  Kong  and  German  Tsing-tau. 
The  oldest  lighthouse  on  the  coast  of  China  is  that 
of  Guia,  standing  sentinel  on  the  highest  point  of 
the  Portuguese  colony. 

The  colony  has  a population  of  perhaps  eighty 
thousand  persons,  and  practically  all  these  are 
Chinese.  There  are,  of  course,  a few  score  of  civil 
and  judicial  functionaries  springing  from  the 
mother-country ; and,  as  in  all  places  where  Euro- 
peans have  long  lived  in  friendly  association  with 
Orientals,  the  Eurasian  class  is  strikingly  numer- 
ous. In  no  court  on  the  Tagus  are  the  laws  of  Por- 
tugal construed  with  more  tenacity  and  precision 
than  in  Macao’s  chambers  of  justice;  and  the  flag 
of  Portugal  floats  over  the  homes  of  hundreds  of 
loyal  subjects  who  know  only  in  a hazy  manner 
where  Poitugal  really  is  — they  are  rich  Chinese 

273 


East  of  Suez 


and  others  evading  the  Chinese  tax  collector,  or 
escaping  burdensome  laws,  and  for  many  years 
these  crafty  Mongols  have  made  a sort  of  political 
Gretna  Green  of  Macao.  Certain  influential  China- 
men carrying  on  business  in  Canton  or  other 
southern  communities  live  in  almost  regal  splen- 
dor in  Macao,  and  when  the  minions  of  the  Chinese 
government  attempt  to  hale  them  before  a tribunal 
of  law,  or  compel  them  to  share  the  expense  of  car- 
rying on  the  administration  of  a province,  they 
exclaim  in  Chinese,  “Oh,  no;  I ’m  a subject  of  the 
King  of  Portugal  ’ ’—and  prove  it.  The  great  sugar 
planter  of  the  Hawaiian  Islands,  Ah  Fong, 
whose  Eurasian  daughters  were  beautiful  and  ac- 
complished enough  to  find  splendid  American  and 
European  husbands,  was  a subject  of  the  Portu- 
guese crown,  strange  to  say.  His  domicile  on  the 
Praia  Grande  is  one  of  Macao’s  proudest  man- 
sions. 

The  colony  of  Macao  is  scarcely  more  important 
than  one  of  Anthony  Hope’s  imaginary  kingdoms, 
but  for  the  fact  that  it  is  on  the  map,  for  the  area 
of  Portugal’s  foothold  is  not  more  than  two  or 
three  miles  in  length,  and  a half-mile  to 
a mile  in  width;  it  is  merely  the  rocky 
promontory  of  the  tip  end  of  the  island 
of  Heung  Shan.  A wall  of  masonry  with 
artistic  gateway  separates  the  dominion  of 
Portugal  from  the  great  Chinese  empire— on  one 
side  of  the  portal  the  law  of  the  Emperor  of  China 
is  absolute,  and  on  the  other  the  rule  of  the  mon- 
arch of  Portugal  is  sacred.  In  various  ways  the 

274 


FRONTIER  GATE  BETWEEM  CHINA  PROPER  AND  THE  PORTUGUESE  COLON 


Macao,  Monte  Carlo  of  the  East 

place  and  its  people  remind  strongly  of  a comic- 
opera  setting— but  the  officer  there  serving  his  far- 
away sovereign  discourses  with  serious  counte- 
nance of  Goa,  and  Delagoa  Bay  and  Macao  as  im- 
portant colonial  possessions.  Until  Hong  Kong 
under  the  British  began  to  rise  as  a port  and  base 
of  commercial  distribution,  Macao  had  a consider- 
able trade;  but  with  the  decline  of  business  the 
harbor  has  silted  up  until  now  an  oversea  ship 
could  not  find  anchorage.  A few  industries,  like 
cement  making  and  silk  winding,  are  carried  on  in 
the  outskirts  of  the  colony,  and  a suspiciously 
large  amount  of  prepared  opium  is  shipped,  al- 
though the  closest  observer  can  detect  not  a 
poppy  under  cultivation  anywhere  on  the  rocky 
promontory. 

The  old  Protestant  cemetery  contains  many 
graves  of  good  men  and  true,  such  as  naval  officers 
and  seamen,  who  have  died  on  Eastern  seas,  and 
whose  comrades  preferred  to  leave  them  interred 
in  Christian  soil  rather  than  intrust  their  cher- 
ished remains  to  cemeteries  in  pagan  lands.  The 
headstones  of  Macao’s  God’s-acre  bear  name 
after  name  once  carried  with  pride  on  the  rolls  of 
the  American,  British  or  French  naval  and  mer- 
chantman services,  and  diplomatic  and  consular 
titles  are  recorded  on  more  than  one  headstone.  It 
is  interesting  to  scale  the  steps  to  inspect  closely 
the  fagade  of  the  Jesuit  church  of  San  Paulo,  erec- 
ted some  three  hundred  years  ago.  Nothing  re- 
mains but  the  towering  fagade,  as  erect  as  if 
reared  yesterday,  and  bearing  silent  testimony  to 

277 


East  of  Suez 


the  courage  of  the  pioneers  in  the  Far  East  of  the 
Catholic  faith.  A ’rickshaw  journey  through 
every  important  street,  from  the  center  where  are 
the  hotel  and  government  buildings  to  the  remotest 
patches  of  farming  land  near  the  “frontier,”  con- 
sumes scarcely  two  hours.  In  the  public  park  you 
come  not  infrequently  upon  statues  with  tablets  in- 
forming all  observers  of  the  importance  and  maj- 
esty of  the  home  country  welded  to  the  peninsula 
of  Europe,  once  famed  for  the  intrepidity  of  its 
navigators  and  adventurers.  If  Macao  move  the 
visitor  to  voice  an  opinion,  it  is  that  under  certain 
conditions  which  you  might  name  the  place  could 
be  a veritable  paradise,  but  that  benevolent  Portu- 
gal is  there  conducting  an  earthly  Nirvana  for  all 
and  sundry  of  China’s  affluent  sons  mustering  the 
ingenuity  and  influence  to  gain  shelter  beneath 
the  flag  of  dear  old  Portugal. 

Macao’s  claim  to  renown  rests  chiefly  upon  the 
fact  that  Portugal ’s  greatest  bard,  Camoens,  there 
wrote  in  part  or  its  entirety  the  immortal  “Lu- 
siad,  ” which  in  epic  form  details  the  prowess  of 
the  sons  of  ancient  Lusitania  in  Eastern  discovery 
and  oversea  feats  of  daring,  and  in  which  work 
the  voyages  and  discoveries  of  Vasco  da  Gama  are 
recorded  with  the  fidelity  of  a history  prepared 
by  a sympathetic  admirer.  As  scholars  know, 
the  “Lusiad”  was  first  published  in  1572,  is  in 
ten  cantos  and  1102  stanzas,  and  is  translated 
into  most  modern  languages.  Important  Amer- 
ican and  English  libraries  possess  it  by  at  least 
four  translators,  each  being  more  or  less  a 
standard. 


278 


BUST  OF  CAMOENS,  MACAO 


Macao,  Monte  Carlo  of  the  East 

The  life  of  the  great  poet  is  underlaid  with  ro- 
mance and  sadness.  Born  at  Lisbon  about  1524, 
he  was  given  an  education  fitting  him  for  a cour- 
tier’s life,  and  it  was  an  unfortunate  affection  for 
a high-born  donna  in  attendance  upon  the  queen 
that  caused  him  to  be  banished  from  the  land  of 
his  birth.  After  a roystering  career  as  a soldier 
in  Africa,  he  sought  shelter  at  Goa,  in  India. 
There  he  wrote  a volume  severely  castigating  the 
home  government  for  its  official  abuses  in  the 
East,  and  this  led  to  his  being  treated  by  his  coun- 
trymen as  a traitor  and  outcast.  Now  in  a Goa 
prison,  now  at  liberty,  he  at  last  went  to  Macao, 
and  it  was  there  that  by  his  pen  he  redeemed  to 
some  extent  his  good  name,  to  the  extent  cer- 
tainly of  being  permitted  to  return  to  Lisbon,  and 
there  he  died  about  1580,  poor  and  neglected.  It 
is  insisted  that  Camoens’s  influence  and  efforts 
preserved  the  Portuguese  language  from  destruc- 
tion during  the  Spanish  occupation  of  the  neigh- 
boring country,  and  it  is  a fact  that  before  1770 
no  less  than  thirty-eight  editions  of  the  “Lusiad” 
were  published  in  Portugal. 

To  commemorate  the  eight  or  ten  years  he  passed 
in  Macao,  a public  garden  is  named  for  him,  and 
there,  in  a grotto  of  impressive  grandeur,  is  a bust 
of  the  man  singing  the  praises  of  his  natal  country 
as  no  other  writer  in  verse  or  prose  has  ever  suc- 
ceeded in  doing.  The  bronze  effigy  rests  on  a 
plinth  upon  which  is  engraved  in  three  languages 
these  lines  from  the  pen  of  a pilgrim  to  the  East- 
ern shrine  once  hallowed  by  the  presence  of  the 
bard  of  a nation : 

281 


East  of  Suez 


Gem  of  the  Orient  earth  and  open  sea 
Macao ! that  in  thy  lap  and  on  thy  breast 
Hast  gathered  beauties  all  the  loveliest 
O’er  which  the  sun  smiles  in  his  majesty. 

The  very  clouds  that  top  the  mountain  crest 
Seem  to  repose  there  lingering  lovingly. 

How  full  of  grace  the  green  Cathyan  tree 
Bends  to  the  breeze  and  how  thy  sands  are  prest 
With  gentlest  waves  which  ever  and  anon 
Break  their  awakened  furies  on  thy  shore. 

Were  these  the  scenes  that  poet  looked  upon, 

Whose  lyre  though  known  to  fame  knew  misery  more  ? 

They  have  their  glories  and  earth’s  diadems 
Have  nought  so  bright  as  genius’  gilded  gems. 

The  lines  were  written  by  Sir  John  Bowring, 
English  scholar  and  traveler,  who  visited  Macao 
in  the  latter  half  of  the  last  century,  and  the  ex- 
pense of  the  memorial  and  its  grounds  was  borne 
by  a patriotic  Portuguese,  Lorengo  Marques, 
whose  name  has  been  preserved  by  being  given  to 
the  seaport  on  Delagoa  Bay  in  Portuguese  East 
Africa. 

For  a place  whose  commerce  is  notoriously  in 
eclipse,  you  are  curious  to  learn  whence  springs 
the  golden  shower  giving  the  appearance  of  pros- 
perity to  Macao,  for  the  general  air  of  the  colony 
suggests  an  easy  affluence.  To  keep  the  gover- 
nor’s palace  and  the  judiciary  buildings  covered 
with  paint  costs  something,  you  know,  while  the 

282 


Macao,  Monte  Carlo  of  the  East 

paved  streets  and  bridges  and  viaducts  give  sup- 
port to  the  surmise  of  an  exchequer  not  perma- 
nently depleted.  Portugal,  nowadays  almost  rob- 
bing Peter  to  pay  Paul,  is  in  no  condition  to  suc- 
cor an  impecunious  colony  situated  in  another 
hemisphere,  you  are  aware,  and  you  appeal  for 
elucidation  of  the  fiscal  problem.  “Very  easy, 
dear  sir,”  your  cicerone  promptly  rejoins,  “this 
is  the  Monte  Carlo  of  the  Far  East.  Gambling  is 
here  a business— all  the  business  there  is,  and  the 
concessions  for  the  fan-tan  and  lottery  monopolies 
pay  for  everything,  practically  making  taxation 
unnecessary.  ’ ’ 

The  statement  would  cause  something  of  a shock 
to  a guileless  stranger,  especially  to  one  who  had 
believed  he  had  perceived  a natural  likeness  be- 
tween the  little  principality  on  the  Mediterranean 
and  this  beauty  spot  of  the  Orient.  But  China  is 
rather  too  far  to  the  eastward  of  Suez  for  simon- 
pure  guile,  and  the  globe-trotter  decides  to  thor- 
oughly explore  local  conditions  by  way  of  adding 
to  his  worldly  knowledge.  If  you  go  to  the  post- 
office  to  mail  a letter,  you  recognize  perforce  how 
backward  a colony  of  Portugal  may  be  in  supply- 
ing the  trifling  requirements  of  life,  for  you  stand 
minutes  in  a nondescript  line  before  your  stamp 
is  sheared  from  a sheet  by  a functionary  having  a 
capacity  for  activity  possibly  rivaled  by  an  Alpine 
glacier— then  you  wait  at  the  communal  mucilage 
pot  to  secure  in  turn  the  required  adhesive  sub- 
stance. A good  correspondent  in  Macao  would 
pass  half  his  time  at  the  post-office,  you  conclude. 

283 


East  of  Su  ez 


But  there  is  nothing  backward,  nothing  harking 
back  to  the  middle  ages,  in  the  plan  by  which  the 
public  cash-box  is  filled,  you  learn  after  plodding 
investigation.  The  merits  of  direct  and  indirect 
taxation,  even  of  the  Henry  George  program  for 
raising  the  public  wind,  have  never  been  seriously 
considered  by  Portugal’s  administrators  in  the 
East,  nor  lias  municipal  ownership  of  utilities  been 
discussed,  you  discover.  The  official  bigwigs  who 
administer  Macao  know  that  it  is  as  necessary  for 
the  Chinaman  to  gamble  as  to  have  food— and  the 
colony  accordingly  legalizes  fan-tan  and  semi- 
daily lotteries,  supplies  the  requisite  machinery 
for  carrying  on  the  games,  and  reaps  a benefice 
for  its  enterprise  that  runs  the  community  without 
further  ado.  That  is  all  there  is  to  Macao’s  fiscal 
policy.  Hong  Kong,  only  forty  miles  across  the 
estuary,  bristles  with  commercial  prosperity.  The 
British  government  permits  Hong  Kongers  to  bet 
on  horse-races,  buy  and  sell  stocks,  and  promote 
devious  companies,  but  forbids  fan-tan  and  lotte- 
ries. There  is,  consequently,  a daily  flow  of  men, 
women,  and  dollars  between  Hong  Kong  and 
Macao.  Besides,  no  traveler  not  actively  engaged 
in  uplifting  his  fellow-man,  feels  that  he  has  seen 
the  Orient  unless  he  passes  a few  hours  or  days  in 
endeavoring  to  lure  fortune  at  the  gambling  tables. 

The  colonial  lottery  is  no  more  dignified  or  im- 
portant than  a policy  game  in  an  American  town, 
and  seems  to  be  but  the  Western  idea  clouded  by 
its  adaptation  to  Asiatic  uses,  tourists  affirm. 

Macao  licenses  twenty  fan-tan  places,  and  these 

284 


Macao,  Monte  Carlo  of  the  East 

run  all  day  and  all  night,  and  are  graded  in  their 
patrons  from  tourists  and  natives  of  fortune  and 
position  down  to  joints  admitting  ’rickshaw  coo- 
lies, sailors,  and  harbor  riffraff.  The  gilded  estab- 
lishment claiming  attention  from  travelers  is  con- 
ducted by  a couple  of  Chinese  worthies,  by  name 
Ung  Hang  and  Hung  Vo,  according  to  the  busi- 
ness card  deferentially  handed  you  at  your  hotel, 
and  the  signs  in  front  of  it  and  the  legends  painted 
on  great  lanterns  proclaim  it  as  a first-chop  Casa 
cle  Jogo,  and  a gambling-house  that  is  “No.  1”  in 
all  respects.  The  gamesters  whose  garments  pro- 
claim them  to  be  middle-class  Chinamen  pack 
themselves  like  sardines  into  the  room  where  the 
table  is  situated,  for  they  obviously  believe  in 
watching  their  interests  at  close  hand.  The  floor 
above,  by  reason  of  the  rail-protected  opening  in 
the  center,  is  little  more  than  a spacious  gallery; 
but  it  is  there  that  the  big  gamblers  congregate, 
natives  in  costly  fabrics,  and  whose  rotund  bodies 
tell  of  lives  not  spent  in  toil.  They  loll  on  black- 
wood  divans  and  smoke  opium  and  send  their 
bank-notes  and  commands  to  the  gambling  table 
by  servants,  until  yielding  to  the  exalted  dreams 
induced  by  the  poppy  fumes.  They  are  polite  fel- 
lows, every  man  of  them,  and  make  it  apparent 
that  they  would  like  to  do  something  for  the  enter- 
tainment of  each  man  and  woman  tourist  in  the 
room. 

In  this  strange  establishment  globe-trotting 
novices  sit  around  the  railed  opening  and  make 
their  bets  on  the  game  below  through  an  inter- 
ns 


East  of  Suez 


preter  attendant.  This  obliging  man  lowers  your 
coins  to  the  croupier  in  a basket,  and  draws  up  any 
“bet”  you  may  have  had  the  luck  to  win.  And 
what  a medley  of  coins  you  are  paid  in!  There 
are  coins  of  China  and  Japan  obsolete  years  ago 
in  those  countries,  money  of  the  Philippine  Is- 
lands, even  nickles  and  dimes  whose  worth  has 
been  stamped  by  Uncle  Sam.  It  is  said  that  half 
the  pocket-pieces  of  Asia  find  their  way  onto  the 
gambling  boards  of  Macao,  and  that  a thrifty 
croupier  seeks  to  pay  them  out  to  the  tourist  who 
will  remove  them  from  local  circulation.  The  lin- 
guistic representative  of  the  management  endea- 
vors to  play  the  bountiful  host  to  most  visitors.  He 
takes  one  through  the  building,  permits  you  to 
peep  within  a chamber  filled  with  oleaginous  Chi- 
namen in  brocade  petticoats,  sleeping  off  the  ef- 
fects of  the  opium  pipe,  explains  painted  fans  and 
other  attempts  at  decoration  on  the  walls,  and  in- 
dicates a retiring  room  where  you  may  rest  or 
even  pass  the  night,  all  without  charge. 

Then  he  orders  refreshments  brought,  and  with 
the  manner  of  a veteran  courtier  proffers  a tray 
heaped  with  oranges,  an  egg-shell  cup  filled  with 
tea  that  is  almost  without  color,  and  dried  water- 
melon seeds  that  you  might  munch  after  the  man- 
ner of  the  neck-or-nothing  gamblers  on  the  lower 
floor.  When  you  politely  decline  these,  the 
courtly  one  most  likely  says,  “You  no  likee  tea 
and  seeds— then  have  whiskysoda.”  Chinese 
courtezans,  with  feet  bound  to  a smallness  making 
locomotion  difficult  and  obviously  painful,  wear- 
ing what  in  the  Western  World  would  be  called 

286 


IN  A FAN-TAN  GAMBLING  HOUSE,  MACAO 


Macao,  Monte  Carlo  of  the  East 

“trousers,”  and  invariably  bedecked  with  ear- 
rings or  bracelets  of  exquisite  jade,  edge  their  way 
to  the  gambling  table,  and  put  their  money  down 
in  handfuls  as  long  as  it  lasts.  To  spend  an  even- 
ing in  the  liberally-conducted  establishment  of 
Messrs.  Ung  Hang  and  Hung  Vo  is  enlightening  in 
various  ways. 

Because  fan-tan  is  the  passion  of  Asiatics,  the 
popular  idea  is  that  it  must  be  the  wickedest  of  all 
games,  if  not  the  most  complicated.  Fan-tan  as  a 
fact  is  simplicity  itself,  being  no  more  than  the 
counting  off  into  units  of  four  several  quarts  of 
little  metal  discs  called  “cash,”  until  there  re- 
main one,  two,  three  or  four  discs.  The  result  de- 
termines what  bets,  laid  about  a four-sided  space 
on  the  table,  win— a single  remaining  “cash” 
makes  the  1-side  win,  two  the  2-side,  and  so  on. 
Each  hazard  is  a one-to-three  wager,  and  the  bank 
pays  on  this  basis  after  deducting  the  recognized 
percentage  supporting  the  establishment.  Spin- 
ning a top  with  four  numbered  sides  would  accom- 
plish in  a minute  the  same  result  as  the  tedious 
counting  of  a heap  of  discs,  varying  with  every 
‘ ‘ deal  ’ ’ according  to  the  whim  or  superstition  of  the 
players,  who  may  add  to  or  take  from  the  pile  prior 
to  the  beginning  of  the  count.  It  is  fortunate  for  the 
millions  of  the  conservative  Far  East  that  their 
principal  gambling  game  is  not  a quick  one,  like 
roulette,  for  the  player  of  fan-tan  gets  “action” 
only  about  once  in  every  ten  minutes.  At  roulette 
and  most  other  games  favored  by  white  men  a 
gambler  knows  his  fate  in  a minute. 


289 


CHAPTER  XIV 


THE  KAISER’S  PLAY  FOR  CHINESE  TRADE 

HAVING  no  voice  in  the  controversy  leading 
to  the  war,  Germany  should  have  remained 
neutral  throughout  the  bitter  Russo-Japanese  con- 
flict. Germany  was  neutral  so  far  as  official  pro- 
prieties went;  hut  in  sympathy  and  numberless  un- 
official acts  she  aided  and  abetted  Russia  to  a de- 
gree unsurpassed  by  the  Bear’s  plighted  ally, 
France.  It  is  a fact  incontrovertible  that  from 
the  commencement  of  hostilities  the  German  Em- 
peror was  as  pro-Russian  as  any  wearer  of  the 
Czar’s  uniform,  and  most  German  bankers  and 
ship-owners  found  it  easy  to  take  the  cue  from 
Berlin  and  view  situations  of  international  pro- 
cedure in  a manner  permitting  them  to  reap  golden 
benefits.  Teuton  bankers  took  the  lead  in  finan- 
cing the  Russian  cause,  and  whenever  Russia  was 
forced  to  purchase  ships  to  augment  her  fleet, 
these  were  always  found  in  Germany.  When  the 
Czar  despatched  his  squadrons  to  the  Far  East, 
they  were  coaled  practically  throughout  the  long 
journey  from  German  colliers.  And  in  other  help- 
ful ways  Germany  officiated  as  the  handmaiden  of 
Russia. 

The  Kaiser’s  favoritism  was  infectious  through- 
29O 


The  Kaiser’s  Play  for  Chinese  Trade 

out  his  empire,  arid  had  the  contending  armies  and 
fleets  in  the  Far  East  been  equally  matched,  with 
the  outcome  hanging  in  the  balance,  the  influence 
of  William  II  could  have  swayed  the  continent  of 
Europe  in  Russia’s  favor,  and  a great  moral  ad- 
vantage would  thereby  have  accrued  to  Russia 
that  would  have  been  difficult  to  overcome.  Why  ? 
Because  the  Kaiser  is  the  strongest,  most  influ- 
ential, and  cleverest  potentate  in  Europe.  Splen- 
did exemplar  of  the  war-lord  idea,  he  is  really  the 
peer  of  diplomatists,  a ruler  whose  utterances  are 
to-day  weighed  and  discussed  as  are  those  of  none 
other.  Understanding  the  value  of  words,  and  a 
coiner  of  subtle  phrases,  an  epigram  from  the  Kai- 
ser contrasting  the  destiny  and  rights  of  the 
“white  man”  and  the  “yellow  man”  would  prob- 
ably have  isolated  the  British  as  Japan’s  only 
sympathizers  in  the  Old  World,  had  it  been  made 
at  an  opportune  time. 

But  the  psychological  moment  never  came— 
there  was  a hitch  somewhere  in  Asia,  and  Kuro- 
patkin’s  genius  was  expended  in  masterly  re- 
treats ; all  the  triumphs  on  land  and  sea  were  those 
of  the  little  men  under  the  sun  flag.  Finally  came 
a mighty  engagement,  and  William  hastened  to 
decorate  the  Russian  loser  and  the  Japanese  vic- 
tor. But  the  point  was  strained;  the  public  per- 
ceived this.  As  a result,  the  incident  fell  flatter 
than  the  anticlimax  of  a melodrama  played  to 
empty  seats. 

The  Kaiser’s  chagrin  was  great.  But  it  need 
not  have  been,  for  the  march  of  events  in  the  East 

291 


i 


East  of  Suez 


was  proving  him  simply  to  be  mortal— he  had 
failed  to  pick  the  winner,  and  was  gradually  be- 
coming aware  of  it.  A plunger  in  a sporting 
event  perceives  an  error  of  judgment  in  a few 
minutes,  usually.  With  the  War-Lord  of  Ger- 
many it  required  the  lapse  of  months  to  convince 
him  of  the  sad  fact  that  Japan  would  win  in  the 
great  struggle. 

Why  War-Lord,  as  an  appellation  for  the  august 
William?  Adept  in  the  art  of  warfare  he  surely 
is;  but  have  not  the  Fatherland’s  victories  under 
his  rule  been  those  of  peace,  and  those  only?  Has 
Germany  been  involved  in  strife  possessing  the 
dignity  of  war  since  he  came  to  the  throne?  Has 
she  not,  on  the  other  hand,  made  headway  in  trade 
and  sea  transportation  under  his  guidance  that  has 
no  parallel  in  the  history  of  a European  state  ? Yes, 
emphatically.  And  are  not  the  words  “Made  in 
Germany”  so  painfully  familiar  throughout  two 
thirds  of  the  globe,  especially  in  Great  Britain  and 
her  possessions,  that  they  strike  terror  to  Britons 
who  study  with  apprehension  the  statistics  of  Eng- 
land’s waning  trade?  This  is  true,  also.  And 
Suez  Canal  returns  prove  that  the  users  of  the 
waterway  under  Britain’s  red  flag  are  vearly  less 
numerous,  while  the  number  of  German  ships  is 
steadily  growing. 

Then  why  not  Trade-Lord,  for  this  is  what  the 
German  Emperor  is?  It  is  the  better  appellation, 
and  more  truthfully  descriptive.  It  surely  is  cred- 
itable to  the  German  people  that  their  national 
progress  is  due  to  habits  of  industry  and  thrift, 

292 


TYPICAL  BUSINESS  STREET  IN  A CHINESE  CITY 


The  Kaiser’s  Play  for  Chinese  Trade 

rather  than  to  military  display:  the  artisan,  not 
the  drill-master,  is  making  Germany  great. 

And  could  Trade-Lord  William  be  honestly 
called  “astute”  if  he  overlooked  the  fact,  obvious 
as  a mountain,  that  one  of  the  stakes  in  the  Russo- 
Japanese  conflict  would  be  the  privilege  amount- 
ing almost  to  right,  to  commercially  exploit  the 
most  populous  country  on  God’s  footstool— 
China?  More  than  one  fourth  of  the  people  of  the 
earth  are  Chinese,  and  their  country  at  the  present 
time  is  more  primitive,  in  the  scarcity  of  railways, 
telegraphs,  public  utilities,  and  every  provision 
conducing  to  comfort  and  common-sense  living, 
than  any  other  land  pretending  to  civilization.  It 
is  a fact  that  outside  of  Shanghai,  Canton,  Pekin 
and  Tientsin,  the  people  do  not  want  many  of  the 
products  of  the  outer  world ; but  it  is  a truism  that 
much  profit  accrues  from  teaching  Asiatics  to 
“want”  modern  products. 

The  German  Emperor  foresaw  that  China  could 
not  much  longer  resist  the  invasion  of  outside  en- 
terprise and  trade;  and  to  his  mind  there  could 
have  been  no  suspicion  of  doubt  that  the  victor  in 
the  awful  contest  could  and  would  dictate  trade 
terms  and  privileges  everywhere  in  the  Celestial 
Empire.  If  Japan  won,  the  Japanese  would 
surely  exploit  commercially  their  great  neighbor, 
whose  written  language  is  nearly  identical  with 
their  own— this  would  be  but  natural  to  the  Mi- 
kado ’s  people,  teeming  with  aptitude  as  manufac- 
turers and  traders,  and  recognizing  the  necessity 
for  recouping  outlay  in  the  war. 

295 


East  of  Suez 


If  Russia  were  successful,  her  reward  would  be 
the  validating  of  her  hold  upon  Manchuria,  the 
bundling  of  the  Japs  out  of  Korea,  and  the  attain- 
ment to  a position  of  controlling  influence  in 
China’s  political  affairs.  The  supplying  of  arti- 
cles of  general  manufacture  and  commerce  to  the 
400,000,000  people  of  China  could  have  been  no 
part  of  Russia’s  aspiration,  for  the  reason  that 
Russia  is  not  a manufacturing  country  and  has  but 
little  to  sell.  Her  enormous  tea  bill  to  China  is 
paid  yearly  in  money,  even.  A nation  seeking  in 
time  to  control  the  whole  of  Asia  could  n’t  bother 
with  commercial  matters,  certainly  not.  Yet,  one 
of  the  fruits  of  victory  in  the  war  would  have  been 
the  splendid  opportunity  to  exploit  trade  every- 
where in  China — a privilege  of  priceless  value. 

What  country  was  to  benefit  through  this,  with 
Russia’s  moral  support  and  permission,  had  the 
Czar’s  legions  been  successful? 

France?  Hardly;  for  the  French  were  bound  by 
hard  and  fast  alliance,  and  it  had  never  been  the 
policy  at  St.  Petersburg  to  give  anything  material 
to  France.  Uncle  Sam,  whose  people  had  financed 
half  the  war  loans  of  Japan,  could  scarcely  hope 
to  extend  his  business  in  China  with  Russia’s  co- 
operation; nor  could  Japan’s  ally  and  moral  sup- 
porter, John  Bull. 

Who,  then,  could  stand  in  a likelier  position  to 
become  legatee  of  this  valued  privilege  than  the 
Trade-Lord  of  Germany?  The  Emperor  William 
had  been  Russia’s  “best  friend”  from  the  incep- 
tion of  the  war,  and  was  admittedly  an  adept  in 

296 


The  Kaiser’s  Play  for  Chinese  Trade 

promoting  trade,  for  his  people  had  attained  in  a 
few  years  to  an  envied  position  in  the  commerce 
of  the  world.  A quarter  of  the  trade  of  “awak- 
ened” China  would  make  Germany  a vast  work- 
shop, a hive  of  industry.  And  this  was  precisely 
what  the  astute  Hohenzollern  saw  through  the 
smoke  of  battle  in  far-away  Manchuria.  He  saw  a 
prosperous  Germany  if  the  Slav  crushed  the  yel- 
low man.  To  say  he  did  not  would  be  a libel  upon 
a giant  intellect. 

Any  one  disposed  to  review  practically  certain 
incidents  in  the  recent  history  of  Germany  may 
develop  a dozen  reasons  why  the  Emperor  should 
seek  to  make  his  country  all  important  through 
trade  conquest.  Let  it  be  remembered  that  the 
Kaiser  chafes  at  barriers  of  every  kind,  and  that 
there  is  a boundlessness  in  his  nature  at  times  try- 
ing to  his  patience.  He  looks  at  the  map  of  the 
German  Empire  and  painfully  admits  that  the 
present  frontiers  and  area  are  practically  those 
bequeathed  by  the  great  William.  To  a divine- 
right  monarch  this  is  exasperating.  The  loftiest 
ambition  of  a sovereign  is  to  have  the  national 
area  expand  under  his  rule. 

William’s  medieval  temperament  shudders  at 
the  crowded  condition  of  the  earth  in  this  twenti- 
eth century,  when  all  frontiers  appear  immovable. 
Had  he  lived  in  the  days  of  the  Crusaders  his  val- 
iant sword  would  probably  have  brought  all  Pal- 
estine under  German  control;  and  had  he  been  a 
free  agent  when  Bonapartism  collapsed  he  most 
likely  would  have  carried  the  German  standard  to 

297 


East  of  Suez 


the  Mediterranean,  perhaps  to  Stamboul.  The 
ironical  fact  is  that  the  German  Emperor  has  had 
rebuffs  and  disappointments  in  his  efforts  to  ex- 
pand his  realm.  The  Monroe  Doctrine,  excluding 
his  empire  from  even  a coaling  station  in  this  hem- 
isphere, is  to  the  Kaiser  a perpetual  nightmare. 
Sturdy  sons  of  the  Fatherland  control  the  trade  of 
more  than  one  republic  in  South  and  Central 
America,  but  nowhere  is  it  possible  to  unfurl  the 
standard  of  Germany  over  “colony”  or  “sphere 
of  influence.”  To  forcibly  back  up  his  subjects’ 
pecuniary  rights  in  the  American  hemisphere, 
even,  the  approval  of  the  government  at  Washing- 
ton has  first  to  be  obtained.  In  his  heart  the  Kai- 
ser loathes  the  doctrine  of  Monroe ; that  is 
obvious. 

It  is  twenty  years  since  Germany  began  to  build 
up  a colonial  empire  in  Africa,  and  the  net  result 
is  that,  after  spending  some  hundred  million  dol- 
lars, she  has  acquired  over  a million  square 
miles  of  territory,  with  a sparsely  scattered 
German  population  of  between  five  and  six  thou- 
sand souls.  A third  of  the  adult  white  population 
is  represented  by  officials  and  soldiers.  Militar- 
ism is  rampant  everywhere,  with  the  result  that 
the  white  settler  shuns  German  colonies  as  he 
would  the  plague.  The  keen-witted  Kaiser  long 
ago  saw  that  empire-building  in  the  Dark  Conti- 
nent could  produce  nothing  but  expense  during  his 
lifetime. 

“To  perdition  with  the  Monroe  Doctrine,  and 
with  African  tribes  blind  to  the  excellence  of  Ger- 

298 


EXHIBITION  OF  BODIES  OF  CHINESE  MALEFACTORS  WHO  HAVE  BEEN  STRANOLED 


The  Kaiser’s  Play  for  Chinese  Trade 

man-made  wares,”  the  Kaiser  might  have  said 
ten  years  ago:  “I  ’ll  have  sweet  revenge  upon  all 
and  sundry  by  capturing  trade  everywhere— I ’ll 
make  Germany  the  workshop  of  the  universe. 
Keep  your  territory,  if  you  like;  I ’ll  get  the 
trade ! Bah,  Monroe  Doctrine ! Bah,  grinning 
Senegambians ! ’ ’ 

The  resolute  Trade-Lord  then  turned  his  face 
to  the  bountiful  Orient,  pregnant  with  resource  be- 
yond the  dreams  of  avarice,  teeming  with  hun- 
dreds of  millions  of  people.  The  East  had  made 
England  dominant  in  the  world’s  affairs.  Keep 
ing  his  soldiers  at  home,  the  Kaiser  hurled  a le- 
gion of  trade-getters  into  the  Far  East,  planting 
commercial  outposts  in  Ceylon,  sending  a flying 
column  of  bagmen  and  negotiators  to  India  and 
the  Straits  Settlements,  and  distributing  a numer- 
ical division  of  business  agents  throughout  China. 
The  Empire  of  the  Celestials  was  made  the  focal 
point  of  a great  propaganda,  openly  espoused  by 
the  Emperor. 

It  was  readily  demonstrated  that  Great  Britain 
had  no  permanent  control  of  commerce  in  the 
East,  not  even  in  her  own  possessions.  The  Teu- 
ton, for  a time  content  with  trifling  profit,  under- 
bid all  rivals— and  orders  and  contracts  poured 
into  Germany.  Belgian  products  competed  only 
in  price ; and  American  manufacturers  seemed  too 
busy  in  providing  goods  for  home  use  to  seriously 
try  for  business  in  Asia— they  booked  orders  com- 
ing practically  unsought,  that  was  about  all.  The 
Chino-Japanese  conflict  of  a dozen  years  ago,  al- 

301 


East  of  Suez 


though  disastrous  to  China’s  army,  stimulated  the 
absorbing  power  of  the  Chinese  for  goods  of  west- 
ern manufacture,  and  Germany  sold  her  wares 
right  and  left. 

Important  steamship  lines  were  then  subsidized 
by  the  German  government  to  maintain  regular 
services  between  Germany  and  the  Far  East,  car- 
rying goods  and  passengers  at  reasonable  charges : 
and  it  was  known  that  in  his  personal  capacity  the 
Emperor  had  become  a large  shareholder  in  one 
of  them.  Germany  was  prospering,  and  the 
Trade-Lord  and  his  lieutenants  were  happy.  All 
recognized  the  possibilities  of  Oriental  business. 
China  was  preparing  to  throw  off  the  conserva- 
tism and  lethargy  of  centuries,  and  trade  was  the 
key-note  of  everything  pertaining  to  Germany’s 
relations  with  the  Pekin  government.  German 
diplomatists  on  service  in  China  were  instructed 
to  employ  every  good  office  to  induce  German  busi- 
ness, and  the  Kaiser  himself  selected  and  instruc- 
ted consular  officials  going  to  the  Flowery  King- 
dom. Able  commercial  attaches,  with  capacity 
for  describing  trade  conditions,  were  maintained 
there,  and  required  to  be  a,s  industrious  as  beav- 
ers. For  trade-promoting  capacity  German  con- 
suls in  China  have  no  equal— and  they  all  know 
that  the  Kaiser’s  interest  in  Chinese  trade 
amounts  to  mania. 

The  assassination  in  the  streets  of  Pekin,  in 
1900,  of  Minister  von  Kettler,  Germany’s  envoy, 
and  the  subsequent  sending  of  an  imperial  prince 
of  China  to  Berlin  to  express  the  regrets  of  the 

302 


The  Kaiser’s  Play  for  Chinese  Trade 

Chinese  government,  strengthened  materially  the 
Kaiser’s  hold  upon  Chinese  affairs.  Reiteration 
from  Washington  of  the  “open  door”  in  China 
struck  no  terror  to  the  Kaiser,  justified  in  believ- 
ing he  could  hold  his  position  against  all  comers. 
As  proof  of  this  belief  he  might  point  to  German 
steamers  in  Hong  Kong  and  Shanghai  literally 
vomiting  forth  each  week  thousands  of  tons  of 
goods  “Made  in  Germany,”  penetrating  every 
section  of  China  even  to  the  upper  waters  of  the 
Yang-tse.  A few  years  ago  nearly  all  this  trade 
was  exclusively  British. 

The  question  of  Chinese  exclusion  and  the 
threatened  boycott  of  American  goods  by  China 
was  the  occasion  of  anxiety  in  this  country— but 
none  in  Germany.  It  is  well  appreciated  that  the 
spread  of  the  sentiment  in  the  East  that  the  United 
States  is  unjust  to  Chinamen  of  the  better  class 
might  undo  the  splendid  work  of  Secretary  Hay 
in  cultivating  the  friendship  of  the  Celestial  Em- 
pire by  standing  fast  for  China’s  administrative 
entity  and  insisting  on  the  “open  door”  policy. 

Knowing  that  the  “awakening”  of  China 
would  be  one  of  the  results  of  the  war,  the  Master 
Mind  in  Berlin  had  not  long  to  consider  where  the 
interest  of  Germany  lay,  for  he  well  knew  that  if 
they  conquered,  the  Japs  might  in  a few  years 
supply  the  kindred  Chinese  with  practically  every 
article  needed  from  abroad. 

If  Russia  won,  then  “Best  Friend”  William  of 
Germany,  one  of  the  most  irresistible  forces  in  the 
world,  would  have  a freer  hand  in  China  than 

303 


East  of  Suez 


ever— and  this  would  mean  a prosperous  Ger- 
many for  years  to  come. 

By  directing  the  sympathies  of  the  German  peo- 
ple to  the  Russian  side,  the  Kaiser  played  a trump 
card  in  statecraft,  certainly.  As  a soldier,  Wil- 
liam II  must  have  known  the  fighting  ability 
and  prowess  of  the  little  men  of  Japan,  for  Ger- 
man officers  had  for  years  been  the  instructors  of 
the  Mikado’s  army— but  the  public  attitude  of  the 
head  of  a government  must  ever  be  that  which  best 
serves  the  State.  Whatever  the  chagrin  at  Ber- 
lin over  Russia’s  defeat,  a battle  royal  will  be 
needed  for  Japan  to  overcome  Germany’s  lead  in 
Chinese  trade;  but  in  time  Japan  will  have  this, 
provided  she  is  well  advised  and  has  the  tact  to 
play  fair  with  Uncle  Sam  and  his  commercial 
rights. 

What  of  the  German  colony  in  China— Kiau- 
chau,  on  the  east  coast  of  the  Shan-tung  peninsula, 
whose  forts  frown  upon  the  Yellow  Sea?  Is  there 
anything  like  it,  strategically  and  trade  wise,  in 
the  East?  When  the  Kaiser’s  glance  falls  upon 
the  map  of  Kiau-chau,  and  he  recalls  the  ease  with 
which  he  segregated  from  Pekin’s  rule  a goodly 
piere  of  old  China,  he  may  be  irreverently  moved 
to  the  extent  of  again  snapping  his  fingers  at  the 
Monroe  Doctrine,  and  at  millions  of  simple  Afri- 
cans who  refuse  to  eat  German  foods  and  wear  not 
a stitch  of  German  fabrics.  Kiau-chau  represents 
the  cleverest  feat  of  colony-building  the  world  has 
seen  since  the  great  powers  declared  a closure  to 
land-grabbing  in  the  East. 

304 


1 


SIMPLE  PUNISHMENT  OF  A CHINESE  MENDICANT 


The  Kaiser’s  Play  for  Chinese  Trade 

When  some  German  missionaries  were  mur- 
dered a few  years  since  in  China,  the  Kaiser,  ever 
an  opportunist,  was  justly  angry,  and  Pekin  shud- 
dered at  the  possibility  of  national  castigation. 
“Could  the  Mighty  One  at  Berlin  condone  the  of- 
fense if  China  gave  Germany  a harbor  to  be  used 
as  coaling  station  and  naval  headquarters!” 
“Possibly;  but  how  can  China  bestow  territory,  in 
view  of  the  American  government’s  certainty  to 
insist  that  there  be  no  parceling  of  China,  none 
whatever!” 

“Easily  managed,”  was  the  reply.  “It  need 
not  be  a transfer  of  territory,  but  a ‘lease,’  say  for 
ninety-nine  years.  This  would  save  China’s 
‘face,’  and  not  disturb  the  powers.” 

Hence  a “lease”  was  prepared  for  all  the  terri- 
tory bounded  in  a semi-circle  drawn  fifteen  miles 
from  Kiau-chau  bay — a goodly  piece  in  all  con- 
science. Then  came  pourparlers  for  greater  Ger- 
man authority,  and  more  territory.  As  a conse- 
quence, in  a supplementary  document  signed  at 
Pekin,  it  was  additionally  agreed  that  “in  a fur- 
ther zone  thirty  miles  from  all  points  of  the  leased 
territory  the  Chinese  government  shall  no  longer 
for  a space  of  ninety-nine  years  be  entitled  to  take 
any  step  without  previous  authorization  from  the 
German  government.  ’ ’ 

This  amounted  in  substance  to  saying  farewell 
on  China’s  part  to  a slice  of  domain  in  all  more 
than  twice  the  size  of  the  state  of  Rhode  Island. 
The  “sphere  of  influence,”  so-called,  measures 
2,750  square  miles.  Germany  was  given  as  well 

307 


East  of  Suez 


the  equivalent  of  sovereignty  over  the  harbor  of 
Kiau-chau,  no  end  of  mining  and  railway  rights, 
and  other  privileges.  The  lease  dates  from 
March  6th,  1898.  England  was  to  give  Wei-hai- 
wei  back  to  China  should  Russia  retire  or  be 
driven  from  Port  Arthur,  but  has  not  done  so. 
In  all  probability  Germany,  as  well  as  Great  Brit- 
ain, is  located  on  the  Yellow  Sea  under  a tenure 
that  will  be  found  to  be  permanent. 

Kiau-chau  harbor  is  one  of  the  most  spacious  and 
best  protected  on  the  coast  of  China.  The  small 
native  town  of  Tsing-tau,  admirably  situated  on  the 
harbor,  was  adopted  by  Germany  as  the  seat  of 
government,  and  all  the  appurtenances  of  a mili- 
tary and  naval  station  have  there  been  erected.  A 
look  of  permanency  characterizes  every  structure. 
The  house  of  the  naval  governor  is  even  preten- 
tious. The  capital  is  laid  out  with  generous  regard 
to  broad  streets,  designated  on  name-plates  as 
“strasses.”  A bank  and  hotels  await  the  coming 
of  business.  The  harbor  has  been  dredged,  and 
two  miles  of  the  best  wharves  in  Asia  constructed 
of  masonry.  Warehouses,  barracks,  hospitals,  ad- 
ministrative buildings  and  coal  sheds  are  there, 
all  in  German  style,  and  intended  to  last  hundreds 
of  years. 

Tsing-tau  as  a seat  of  deputed  government  may 
not  have  found  its  way  into  school-books— but  the 
inquisitive  traveler  in  Northeast  China  readily 
learns  of  its  existence.  Perhaps  it  is  meant  to  be 
complimentary  to  China  to  retain  the  name  Tsing- 
tau— but  that  is  all  about  the  place  that  is  Chinese, 

308 


The  Kaiser’s  Play  for  Chinese  Trade 

save  the  coolies  executing  the  white  man’s  behest. 
There  are  3,000  Europeans,  almost  exclusively 
Germans,  in  William  II ’s  capital  on  Kiau-chau 
Bay.  Soldiers  and  officials  predominate,  of  course, 
but  merchant  and  industrial  experts  are  in  the 
pioneer  band  in  conspicuous  number. 

And  what  of  the  “hinterland,”  compassed  by 
the  45-mile  semicircle,  dotted  with  thirty  odd  na- 
tive towns,  the  whole  having  a population  of 
1,200,000?  This  patch  of  China  is  surely  in  pro- 
cess of  being  awakened : there  are  numerous 
schools  wherein  European  missionaries  are  teach- 
ing the  German  language,  and  enterprise  greets 
the  eye  everywhere.  Locomotives  “Made  in  Ger- 
many” screech  warnings  to  Chinese  yokels  to 
clear  the  way  for  trains  heavy  with  merchandise 
of  German  origin — and  this  is  but  an  incident  in 
the  great  scheme  of  Germanizing  the  Chinese  Em- 
pire. Incidentally,  it  is  provided  by  the  agree- 
ment between  the  Pekin  and  Berlin  governments 
that  a native  land-owner  in  the  leased  section  can 
sell  only  to  the  German  authorities.  This  ruling 
conveys  a meaning  perfectly  clear. 

Less  than  a hundred  miles  up-country  are  the 
enormous  coal  fields  of  Weilisien  and  Poslian,  by 
agreement  worked  with  German  capital,  and  con- 
nected with  the  harbor  by  railways  built  with 
German  money  and  so  devoted  to  Teutonic  inter- 
ests that  the  name  of  the  company  is  spread  on 
the  cars  in  the  language  of  the  dear  old  Father- 
land.  The  whole  is  a magnificent  piece  of  propa- 
gandism,  surely. 

14 


309 


East  of  Suez 


And  what  is  back  of  it?  What  is  the  purpose 
of  the  appropriation  of  14,000,000  marks  for  Kiau- 
chau  in  last  year’s  official  budget  of  the  German 
government?  Trade,  little  else;  and  Trade  spelled 
best  with  a large  T.  Kiau-chau  is  a free  port,  like 
Hamburg.  Why  not  make  it  the  Hamburg  of  the 
East?  is  the  question  asked  wherever  German  mer- 
chants foregather  and  affairs  of  the  nation  are 
discussed.  From  the  standpoint  of  German  trade, 
an  Eastern  Hamburg  is  alluring  and  laudatory— 
but  few  American  manufactures,  let  it  be  plainly 
stated,  will  penetrate  China  through  a gateway  so 
controlled. 

America ’s  seeming  indifference  to  Chinese 
trade,  let  it  plainly  be  stated,  is  the  only  solace 
that  commercial  Europe  is  finding  in  our  wonder- 
ful national  growth.  The  subject  is  almost  never 
referred  to  in  the  columns  of  British  journals,  nor 
in  those  of  Germany,  France,  or  Belgium.  But 
manufacturers  and  exporters  of  these  countries 
need  no  spur  from  their  newspapers — without  the 
accompaniment  of  beating  drums  all  are  seeking 
to  make  the  Chinese  their  permanent  customers. 
And,  buttressed  by  undeniable  advantages,  Japan 
takes  up  the  quest  and  means  to  spread  her  goods, 
largely  fabricated  from  Uncle  Sam’s  raw  pro- 
ducts, wherever  the  tenant  of  the  earth  be  a 
Mongol. 

Could  a human  being  be  more  complaisant,  more 
materially  philanthropic,  than  the  United  States 
manufacturer  or  other  producer?  He  surely  can- 
not be  blind  to  the  undebatable  fact  that  America 

310 


CHINESE  BUDDHIST  PRIESTS 


The  Kaiser’s  Play  for  Chin  ese  Trade 

cannot  always  wax  opulent  on  home  trade  alone; 
he  must  know  that  in  time  we  are  certain  to 
reach  a period  of  overproduction,  when  it  will 
aid  the  nation  to  have  alien  peoples  for  custo- 
mers of  our  mills  and  workshops.  Every  land  in 
Asia  east  of  Singapore  can  be  commercially  ex- 
ploited by  the  United  States  more  easily,  and  with 
greater  success,  than  by  any  other  people,  if  the 
task  be  gone  about  systematically  and  practically. 

The  Chinese  envoy  of  a few  years  ago  to  Wash- 
ington, Minister  Wu,  said  many  wise  things,  and 
no  epigram  fell  from  his  lips  containing  a pro- 
founder sermon  for  the  American  people  than 
when  he  remarked  that  two  inches  added  to  the 
length  of  the  skirts  of  every  Chinese  would  double 
the  market  value  of  every  pound  of  cotton. 

Small  as  it  was,  our  commerce  in  China  was  se- 
verely lessened  last  year,  not  alone  by  the  boycott, 
but  through  the  enterprise  shown  by  other  nations 
having  a share  in  Celestial  trade.  The  cotton  cloth 
exports  of  the  United  States  to  China  and  Man- 
churia for  the  nine  months  ending  September  30 
fell  off  by  over  ten  million  dollars  as  compared 
with  the  same  period  of  1905.  The  respective 
amounts  were  $15,416,152  and  $25,566,286.  The 
Chinese  buyers  gave  preference  to  the  British, 
taking  $34,245,129  worth  of  cotton  fabrics  from 
the  United  Kingdom  for  the  first  nine  months  of 
1906,  a decrease  of  $3,770,584  from  last  year.  The 
British  loss  on  bleached  and  gray  goods  was  about 
half  that  of  America’s  total  loss,  but  the  English 
exporters  made  up  a large  part  of  the  shortage  by 

313 


East  of  Suez 


much  larger  sales  of  printed  and  dyed  goods.  But 
while  America  remained  almost  stationary  last 
year  in  selling  cotton  manufactures  to  the  world, 
Great  Britain  made  a tremendous  stride.  Her 
cotton  fabric  exports  for  the  first  nine  months  of 
1906  were  valued  at  a little  more  than  two  hundred 
and  seventy-six  million  dollars,  an  increase  of 
about  twenty  million  dollars  over  the  same  period 
of  1905,  and  of  nearly  fifty  million  dollars  over  the 
first  nine  months  of  1904.  This  was  accomplished 
almost  wholly  by  marketing  wares  wrought  from 
fiber  grown  in  our  Southern  States,  let  it  be  re- 
membered. 

And  what  would  happen  to  British  trade,  let  us 
inquire,  were  America  to  cease  exporting  raw  cot- 
ton, to  permit  our  staple  to  emerge  from  our  land 
in  a manufactured  state,  only? 

The  mere  suggestion  of  the  thing  is  sufficient  to 
cause  a cold  shudder  to  play  down  the  spinal  col- 
umn of  John  Bull.  But  the  American  people  will 
never  play  the  game  of  commerce  in  that  way. 


3H 


CHAPTER  XV 


JAPAN  S COMMERCIAL  FUTURE 


NATION  has  risen  in  the  Far  East  that  is 


earning  high  place  among  enlightened 
governments,  and  in  all  probability  the  new-comer 
may  already  be  entitled  to  permanently  rank  with 
the  first-class  powers  of  the  earth.  Japan  is  day 
by  day  a growing  surprise  to  the  world 

That  the  diminutive  Island  Empire  should  have 
been  able  to  humble  the  Muscovite  pride  was  no 
greater  marvel  than  that  she  should  in  a brief 
half-century  advance  from  the  position  of  a weak 
and  unknown  country  to  the  station  of  a highly 
civilized  nation.  The  government  of  the  Mikado 
is  to-day  the  best  exponent  of  Asiatic  progressive- 
ness. And  of  a people  with  a capacity  to  perform 
in  two  generations  such  amazing  things  who  shall 
dare  say  what  to  them  is  impossible? 

Europe  has  never  been  in  joyful  mood  over  the 
rise  in  Japanese  prestige,  and  she  was  more  than 
reluctant  to  recognize  the  New  Japan  as  the  domi- 
nant force  in  the  East.  That  a yellow  people 
should  claim  fellowship  with  European  countries 
guided  by  houses  of  lofty  lineage  was  never  be- 
lieved to  be  possible.  Continental  Europe  was  un- 


315 


East  of  Suez 


prepared  to  admit  that  Japan’s  triumph  proved 
anything  beyond  a genius  in  the  art  of  war  that 
was  nothing  short  of  a menace  to  the  rest  of  man- 
kind, and  that  luck  and  geographical  position 
helped  the  Mikado’s  legions  in  all  ways.  The 
great  Hohenzollern  spoke  of  the  Japanese  as  the 
“scourge  of  God’’;  in  France  the  “yellow  peril’’ 
—a  phrase  really  made  in  Germany— was  seri- 
ously debated;  while  Russia  many  times  sought 
sympathy  from  the  Christian  world  on  the  ground 
that  she  was  fighting  the  white  man’s  battle 
against  paganism.  Solitary  in  her  preference  for 
the  Japanese,  expressed  in  the  form  of  an  astute 
and  fortunate  alliance,  England  gloried  when  her 
Oriental  ally  revealed  the  weakness  of  the  vaunted 
power  of  the  north  that  had  dared  to  cast  covetous 
eyes  at  India.  All  these  nations  hold  Asiatic  pos- 
sessions, each  has  aspired  to  have  a say  in  Chi- 
nese affairs,  and  each  confesses  to  having  a pana- 
cea for  the  innumerable  ills  of  the  Celestial 
Empire— each  is  hungry,  likewise,  to  extend  her 
trade  with  the  awakening  Orient. 

Japan  intruded,  and  deranged  the  plans  of  all 
and  sundry  for  rousing  China  to  a realization  of 
her  greatness;  and  in  all  human  probability  Ja- 
pan will  do  for  herself  what  several  European 
powers  wanted  to  do  for  Asia.  Japan  can  always 
justify  her  claim  that  she  was  driven  to  war  to 
preserve  her  national  existence,  by  pointing  to  her 
rapidly-increasing  population,  existing  in  an  arch- 
ipelago incapable  of  producing  food  for  even  two 
thirds  of  her  people,  since  every  possibility  of  ob- 

316 


Japan’s  Commercial  Future 

taming  a foothold  on  the  adjacent  continent  had 
been  cut  off  by  self-imposed  Russian  rule.  There 
was  no  room  for  expansion,  that  was  clear. 

When  Japan  shattered  the  strength  of  Russia 
she  gained  many  coveted  advantages.  One  of 
these  was  the  opportunity  to  commercialize  neigh- 
boring Korea,  a goodly  section  of  Manchuria,  and 
practically  the  whole  of  China— enough  to  recoup 
the  war’s  outlay;  and  once  entered  upon,  why  not 
perfect  and  extend  the  enterprise  wherever  she 
might,  thereby  providing  occupation  for  her  in- 
creasing millions  of  people? 

For  a long  time  to  come  Japan  will  remain  con- 
spicuously in  the  public  eye,  but  her  achievements 
and  victories  hereafter  are  to  be  those  of  peace. 
Her  scheme  for  national  betterment,  already  well 
under  way,  is  as  thoughtfully  prepared  as  was  her 
war  program.  The  Mikado’s  people  emerged 
from  the  Russian  conflict  with  energies  enor- 
mously aroused,  and  a few  months  later  every  con- 
dition was  favorable  to  a realization  of  the  dream 
of  empire  giving  to  Japan  an  importance  amount- 
ing almost  to  sovereignty  over  a vast  section  of 
the  Far  East.  The  new  treaty  with  Great  Britain, 
which  Germans  claimed  to  be  anything  but  altruis- 
tic, is  having  a steadying  influence  on  the  policy  of 
the  Tokyo  government. 

With  the  conversion  of  Japan  from  war  to 
peace,  the  process  of  fiscal  recuperation  and  indus- 
trial development  has  been  observed  by  students 
of  Eastern  affairs  with  the  keenest  interest.  The 
debt  of  the  nation  at  the  close  of  the  war  in  1905 

317 


East  of  Suez 


was  approximately  $870,000,000,  which  sum,  ap- 
portioned among  Nippon’s  47,000,000  inhabitants, 
was  $18.71  per  capita.  The  amount  properly 
chargeable  to  the  campaign  was  $600,000,000,  or 
thereabouts.  A characteristic  of  the  war  com- 
manding widespread  attention  was  that  the  Jap- 
anese side  was  conducted  from  start  to  finish  on 
the  soundest  financial  principles,  with  her  credit 
abroad  scarcely  lessened  by  successive  bond  is- 
sues. It  was  the  criticism  of  students  of  finance 
that  Japan  conducted  her  campaign  throughout 
on  a gold  basis,  as  if  exploiting  a vast  commercial 
program,  without  subjecting  herself  to  usurious 
commissions,  and  without  resorting  to  the  issu- 
ance of  fiat  or  negligible  currency.  The  financing 
of  the  Asiatic  side  of  the  great  Russo-Japanese 
conflict  was  certainly  as  businesslike  as  anything 
ever  done  by  a European  power  compelled  to 
raise  funds  by  foreign  bond  sales. 

When  a candid  history  of  the  war  is  penned,  the 
writer  must  perforce  acknowledge  the  “luck”  at- 
taching to  Japan  when  Russia  expelled  the  Jews, 
and  when  thousands  of  that  faith  were  ruthlessly 
slaughtered  at  Kishineff.  Whether  the  purse- 
strings of  the  world  are  controlled  by  Hebrew 
bankers  may  be  a moot  question,  but  it  was  a fact 
distinctly  clear  that  Japan  could  place  her  bonds 
in  any  money-lending  country  in  the  world,  while 
Russia  could  scarcely  raise  a rouble  upon  her  for- 
eign credit.  Even  Germany,  the  sentimental  ally 
of  Russia,  almost  begged  for  the  privilege  of  lend- 
ing to  Japan.  There  was  no  disputing  that  the 
great  Hebraic  banking  houses  of  London,  New 

3>8 


BRONZE  DAIBUTSU  AT  KAMAKURA,  JAPAN 


Japan’s  Commercial  Future 

York  and  Frankfort  found  it  an  easy  task  to  sup- 
ply the  Mikado ’s  country  with  every  needed  sinew 
of  war,  and  the  massacres  of  Kishineff  may  have 
been  avenged  in  a measure  at  Port  Arthur  and 
Mukden. 

The  ambitious  and  sturdy  people  of  Japan  arc 
indisposed  to  regard  the  war  debt  as  an  excessive 
burden,  and  it  is  their  determination  to  treat  their 
bonded  obligations  as  a spur  to  active  industry. 
It  must  be  confessed  that  Japan’s  debt  is  but  a tri- 
fle less  than  that  of  the  United  States,  and  is  car- 
ried at  double  the  interest  rates  of  the  American 
debt;  and  further,  that  Japan’s  total  area  is 
smaller  than  that  of  our  state  of  California.  The 
portentous  aspect  of  the  national  obligation  of  Ja- 
pan is  that  it  must  absorb  in  interest  charges  fully 
a third  of  the  empire’s  income  for  many  years  of 
peace  and  prosperity  to  come. 

A large  part  of  the  debt  incurred  before  the  war 
was  for  public  works,  most  of  which  are  produc- 
tive. Funds  realized  from  early  loans,  both  for- 
eign and  domestic,  as  well  as  a portion  of  the  in- 
come from  the  indemnity  earned  by  the  war  with 
China,  were  invested  in  commercial  enterprises 
owned  or  fostered  by  the  empire,  and  the  govern- 
ment receives  a considerable  benefit  from  the  pub- 
lic railways,  tobacco  monopoly,  woolen  mills,  and 
a few  other  industrial  ventures.  The  railways  are 
extremely  profitable,  and  the  large  sums  spent  in 
the  creation  of  post-offices,  telephone  and  tele- 
graph lines,  port  facilities,  etc.,  have  proved  wise 
investments. 

Observers  of  national  statistics  have  long  known 
321 


East  of  Suez 


that  a country  without  heavy  indebtedness 
amounts  to  little  in  a worldly  and  industrial  sense. 
Abundantly  solvent,  France  has  a debt  averaging 
$151.70  per  person,  and  the  United  Kingdom 
(Great  Britain  and  Ireland),  a pro  rata  debt  of 
$91.80.  Portugal  owes  $143.82  per  subject,  Hol- 
land $90.74,  and  Belgium  $75.63.  The  heaviest 
governmental  obligation  is  that  of  Australia,  av- 
eraging $263.90  per  inhabitant;  and  the  lightest 
responsibility  among  important  nations  is  that  of 
the  United  States,  gradually  lessening,  now  stand- 
ing at  but  $10.93.  Our  Cuban  neighbors,  owing 
$21.88  per  capita,  make  little  complaint  of  fiscal 
burden.  Whether  a debt  be  burdensome  or  other- 
wise depends  as  much  upon  the  character  of  the 
people  as  upon  natural  resources.  Decaying  Por- 
tugal could  not  by  industry  liberate  herself  from 
pecuniary  thraldom  in  a century,  while  the  Japan- 
ese probably  could  liquidate  every  obligation  in 
fifteen  years,  were  they  pressed  to  do  so. 

No  country  can  present  a better  foundation  for 
industrial  and  commercial  development  at  this 
time  than  Japan,  and  the  signing  at  Portsmouth 
of  the  peace  agreement  marked  the  beginning  of 
an  era  of  national  growth  that  may  challenge  the 
admiration  of  the  world  as  did  the  feats  of  arms 
of  Oyama  and  Togo.  The  war  cemented  classes  in 
Japan  almost  to  a condition  of  homogeneity— 
practically  every  subject  of  the  Mikado  believed 
in  the  necessity  for  the  conflict,  and  made  sacri- 
fices to  contribute  to  the  cost  thereof.  Distinctions 
of  class  are  now  seldom  thought  of,  and  it  contrib- 

322 


Japan’s  Commercial  Future 

utes  mightily  to  the  material  improvement  of  a na- 
tion to  have  a single  language.  The  descendants 
of  the  samurai  class  acknowledge  now  the  need  for 
trade  on  a grand  scale,  and  they  are  only  too  ready 
to  embark  in  manufacturing  and  trading  enter- 
prises. There  are  scarcely  ten  great  fortunes  in 
the  realm,  and  the  number  of  subjects  removed 
from  activity  by  even  moderate  affluence  is  re- 
markably small.  Likewise,  the  number  of  persons 
reckoned  in  the  non-producing  class,  through  dis- 
sipation or  infirmity,  is  insignificant.  And,  more 
potent  than  all  these  reasons  uniting  to  assist  in 
the  expansion  of  Japanese  industry  and  thrift,  is 
the  intense  patriotism  of  the  people,  stimulated  by 
glorious  success  in  two  wars  against  foreign  na- 
tions of  overwhelming  populations,  as  well  as  the 
recognition  from  high  and  low  that  Japan’s 
golden  opportunity  has  arrived.  Almost  to  a man 
the  Japanese  want  to  employ  their  sinews  and  in- 
tellect in  elevating  the  Land  of  the  Rising  Sun  to 
an  honored  place  among  progressive  nations. 

The  Japanese  exchequer  is  at  present  a long 
way  from  depletion,  by  reason  of  the  $150,000,000 
loan  secured  in  America,  England  and  Germany. 
Probably  two  thirds  of  this  remained  unexpended. 
Many  Tokyo  bankers  believed  the  loan  unneces- 
sary, inasmuch  as  there  were  funds  in  hand  suf- 
ficient to  finance  the  war  well  into  1906,  had  peace 
not  been  agreed  upon.  But  the  flotation  was 
deemed  wise,  not  alone  because  of  prevailing  ease 
in  the  money  market,  but  for  the  effect  that  an 
oversubscribed  loan  in  America  and  Europe  would 

323 


East  of  Suez 


have  upon  the  Czar’s  government.  The  portion  of 
the  loan  remaining  unused  for  war  was  employed 
for  giving  effect  to  Japan’s  industrial  propa- 
ganda, and  presumably  has  been  spent  for  the  end- 
less machinery  demanded  by  the  factories  and 
shipyards  that  are  transforming  Japan  into  a vast 
workshop,  for  structural  metal,  and  for  steel  rails, 
cars  and  locomotives  for  railways  in  Manchuria 
and  Korea ; and  generally  for  the  hundred  and  one 
purposes  playing  a part  in  the  development  of 
lands  hitherto  out  of  step  in  the  march  of  enter- 
prise, and  where  strife  has  until  recently  stifled 
the  usual  manifestations  of  man’s  desire  to 
improve  his  surroundings.  The  Japanese  govern- 
ment in  1906  purchased  six  railways,  which  were 
profit  earners,  paying  for  them  $125,000,000  in  five 
per  cent,  bonds  that  may  be  redeemed  in  five  years. 

There  is  no  likelihood  of  a reduction  in  Japan’s 
debt  for  a long  time,  but  its  weight  upon  the  peo- 
ple may  be  reduced  by  conversions.  As  the  na- 
tional credit  strengthens,  the  interest  on  borrow- 
ings may  be  correspondingly  decreased.  Conse- 
quently, there  may  be  frequent  funding  operations 
and  new  issues,  until  seven  and  six  per  cent,  bonds 
have  given  place  to  obligations  bearing  five  per 
cent,  interest  or  less.  To  provide  funds  for  early 
railway  building,  considerable  capital  was  bor- 
rowed at  as  high  a rate  as  ten  per  cent.  When 
these  obligations  expire  all  necessary  money  can 
be  found  in  the  country  at  less  than  half  the  origi- 
nal rate.  Japan  is  fortunate  in  having  many 
sound  financiers  to  invite  to  her  official  councils, 

324 


japan’s  Commercial  Future 

and  it  is  helpful  to  the  country  that  Tokyo  and  Yo- 
kohama bankers  are  competent  and  progressive. 
These  men  pronounce  Japan’s  present  financial 
position  sound,  and  claim  that  the  country  can  eas- 
ily carry  the  existing  debt. 

In  natural  resources  Japan  is  not  well  to  do,  it 
must  be  frankly  said.  Examine  the  country  in  as 
friendly  a spirit  as  one  may,  little  is  developed  to 
support  any  statement  that  the  country  may  be- 
come prosperous  from  the  products  of  her  own 
soil.  In  truth  Japan  is  nearly  as  unproductive  as 
Greece  and  Norway,  for  only  sixteen  per  cent,  of 
her  soil  is  arable.  The  mountain  ranges  and  peaks 
and  terraced  hills  that  make  the  country  scenically 
attractive  to  the  tourist  come  near  to  prohibiting 
agriculture.  The  lowlands,  separating  seacoast 
from  the  foothills,  and  the  valleys  generally,  are 
given  over  to  rice  culture,  and  these  contribute 
largely  towards  sustaining  the  people.  Where  val- 
leys are  narrow,  and  on  hillside  patches,  cultiva- 
tion is  carried  on  wholly  by  hand.  In  recent  years 
phosphates  and  artificial  fertilizers  have  been  en- 
couraged by  the  government,  and  with  the  educa- 
tional work  now  in  hand  science  may  give  an  in- 
crease of  crops  from  the  circumscribed  tillable 
area.  The  country’s  forests  cannot  be  sacrificed, 
and  grazing  lands  for  flocks  and  herds  scarcely 
exist. 

A recent  magazine  writer,  holding  a doleful 
view  of  Japan’s  agricultural  condition,  wholly 
overlooked  the  silk  and  tea  crops  in  his  search  for 
native  products,  an  error  obviously  fallen  into 

325 


East  of  Suez 


through  the  fact  that  these  are  not  raised  on  what 
governmental  reports  call  “tillable  ground,”  — 
meaning  that  they  are  produced  outside  the  six- 
teen per  cent,  arable  area.  Silk  is  Japan’s  impor- 
tant salable  crop,  two  thirds  of  which  is  exported 
in  its  raw  state.  In  the  past  few  years  the  silk 
exports  have  averaged  $55,000,000.  Japan  grows 
the  tea  consumed  in  the  country,  and  sends  annu- 
ally $6,500,000  worth  to  market. 

If  the  rice  crop  might  be  exported  it  would  rea- 
lize $200,000,000  each  year.  But  no  food  may  be 
sent  abroad,  for  it  is  a sad  fact  that  Japan  is  capa- 
ble of  feeding  only  two  thirds  of  her  own  people. 
It  is  necessary  to  import  foodstuffs  to  the  extent 
of  about  $47,000,000  a year.  The  Japanese  benefit 
by  the  compensating  supply  of  fish  secured  from 
the  seas  washing  the  shores  of  the  Island  Empire. 
When  it  is  realized  that  Japan’s  rapidly-growing 
population  cannot  be  sustained  by  her  soil  and 
fisheries,  the  real  reason  for  battling  against  Rus- 
sia’s aggression  on  the  mainland  is  understood,  for 
ten  years  hence,  Japan’s  crowding  millions,  con- 
fined to  her  own  islands,  would  experience  the 
pangs  of  hunger.  The  Mikado  and  his  councilors 
foresaw  this. 

“Having  deposits  of  coal  and  iron,  why  may  not 
Japan  be  developed  into  the  Eastern  equivalent 
of  England?”  ask  stay-at-home  admirers  of  the 
Japanese,  who  believe  that  to  them  nothing  is  im- 
possible. The  Mikado’s  territory  has  coal,  iron 
and  copper,  it  is  true ; but  in  no  instance  is  the  min- 
eral present  to  an  extent  making  it  a national  as- 

326 


A GARDEN  VIEW  OF  THE  AMERICAN  EMBASSY,  TOKYO 


Japan’s  Commercial  Future 

set  of  importance.  Bituminous  coal  of  good  qual- 
ity is  mined  at  several  points  which  is  used  by  Jap- 
anese commercial  and  naval  vessels ; but  elsewhere 
in  the  East  it  has  to  compete  with  Chinese  and  In- 
dian coals.  It  is  said  in  Nagasaki  that  her  coal 
will  last  another  two  centuries,  but  were  it  mined 
on  the  scale  of  American  and  British  coal  it  would 
be  exhausted  in  a generation.  The  greatest  efforts 
have  been  made  to  produce  iron  ore  in  paying 
quantities.  In  several  instances  public  assistance 
has  been  lent  to  the  industry,  but  seldom  has  a ton 
of  ore  been  raised  that  has  not  cost  twice  its  mar- 
ket value.  Japan  is  determined  to  become  a pro- 
ducer of  iron,  and  to  this  end  a long  lease  had  been 
secured  on  an  important  mineral  tract  in  China, 
whose  ore  blends  advantageously  with  Mexican 
and  Californian  hematite,  while  it  is  asserted  that 
the  government  has  secured  in  Manchuria  a seam 
of  coal  fifty  feet  in  thickness,  covered  by  a few  feet 
of  soil,  that  is  contiguous  to  transportation,  and 
which  cannot  be  exhausted  in  hundreds  of  years. 
A valuable  acquisition  in  conquered  Saghalien— 
not  noted  by  the  newspapers— is  beds  of  coal  and 
iron  of  vast  area.  These  may  enable  Japan,  in 
her  determination  to  become  a manufacturing  na- 
tion, to  be  eventually  independent  of  other  coun- 
tries for  basic  supplies.  But  success  in  this  direc- 
tion is  problematical,  to  say  the  least. 

For  two  thousand  years  Japan  has  mined  cop- 
per in  a limited  way,  but  the  production  of  the 
metal  is  carried  on  at  present  without  much  profit. 
When  the  Chinese  government  requires  a vast 

329 


East  of  Suez 


quantity  of  copper  the  order  is  sent  to  the  United 
States.  Japan  cannot  be  considered  as  a producer 
of  minerals  of  sufficient  importance  to  aspire  to  a 
profitable  career  through  them,  for  the  yearly  ag- 
gregate value  of  all  minerals,  including  gold  from 
the  Formosa  mines,  is  not  more  than  $20,000,000. 

The  inevitable  query  in  the  reader’s  mind  is, 
How  is  the  Jap,  knowing  it  is  now  or  never  with 
him— and  cognizant  that  he  is  poor  in  all  save  am- 
bition and  enterprise— going  to  create  for  his  be- 
loved Nippon  a position  of  prominence  and  secur- 
ity in  the  fast- rushing,  selfish  world?  Every  intel- 
ligent Japanese  is  aware  of  the  slenderness  of  his 
country’s  resources,  and  yet  every  son  of  the 
Chrysanthemum  Realm  throbs  with  desire  to  see 
Japan  a first-class  and  self-supporting  power,  hon- 
ored and  respected  throughout  the  universe. 

The  Japanese  possess  some  quality  of  golden 
value,  otherwise  cautious  capitalists  in  America 
and  Europe  would  never  have  lent  them  $360,000,- 
000.  What  is  it? 

Japan’s  asset  of  importance  is  the  awakened  en- 
ergy of  her  people — this  was  the  soundest  security 
back  of  the  bond  issues.  It  won  the  war  over  Rus- 
sia, and  persons  familiar  with  the  Japanese  char- 
acter believe  it  is  now  going  to  win  commercially 
and  industrially.  Better  proof  of  this  is  not 
wanted  than  the  fact  that  Japanese  bonds  stood  as 
firm  as  the  rock  of  Gibraltar  on  the  world’s  ex- 
changes when  it  became  known  that  Russia  was  to 
pay  no  indemnity.  The  information  provoked 
street  riots  in  Tokyo,  but  Japanese  securities 

330 


Japan’s  Commercial  Future 

moved  only  fractionally  in  New  York  and  Lon- 
don. 

Two  countries  have  long  been  keenly  observed 
by  enlightened  Japanese.  They  study  America  as 
a model  industrial  land,  and  get  manufacturing 
ideas  from  us ; but  they  look  to  Great  Britain  for 
everything  having  to  do  with  empire,  with  aggran- 
dizement, and  with  diplomacy.  To  them  England 
is  a glittering  object  lesson  of  a nation  existing  in 
overcrowded  islands  extending  its  rule  to  other 
lands  and  other  continents,  producing  endless  ar- 
ticles needed  by  mankind,  and  carrying  these  to 
the  ends  of  the  earth  in  their  own  ships.  (These 
Japanese  have  perceived  that  the  interchange  of 
commodities  between  most  countries  of  the  globe 
is  preponderatingly  in  the  hands  of  the  British— 
in  fact,  that  the  enterprise  of  British  merchant  or 
British  ship-owner  has  placed  practically  the 
universe  under  tribute. 

May  not  insular  Japan  become  in  time  the  Asia- 
tic equivalent  of  Great  Britain?  Japan  is  advan- 
tageously located,  and  by  common  consent  is  now 
dominant  in  the  Far  East.  Years  ago  England 
ceased  to  be  an  agricultural  country,  and  the  prod- 
ucts of  British  workshops  now  buy  food  from 
other  nations  and  allow  for  the  keeping  of  a money 
balance  at  home.  Nature  has  decreed  that  Japan 
can  never  be  an  agricultural  land.  Why,  then, 
may  she  not  do  what  England  has  done?  England 
has  her  India,  pregnant  with  the  earth’s  bounty, 
and  her  Australia,  yet  awaiting  completer  devel- 
opment by  man.  Why  may  not  the  great  Middle 


East  of  Suez 


Kingdom  become  the  handmaiden  of  Japan,  with- 
out disturbing  dynastic  affairs,  and  primitive 
Korea  be  a fair  equivalent  of  the  Antipodean  con- 
tinent? It  is  known  to  be  Japan’s  plan  to  perma- 
nently colonize  Korea  and  Manchuria,  teeming  in 
agricultural  and  mineral  riches,  with  her  surplus 
population. 

“Prestige  and  opportunity  make  this  attaina- 
ble,” insist  the  ambitious  sons  of  Japan;  “and 
while  it  is  probably  too  late  to  expand  the  political 
boundaries  of  our  empire,  we  surely  may  make 
Nippon  the  seat  of  a mighty  commercial  control, 
including  in  its  sphere  all  of  China  proper,  Man- 
churia and  Korea— welding  them  into  ‘commercial 
colonies’  of  Japan.”  This  is  precisely  what  the 
modern  Japanese  wants  his  country  to  do,  and  this 
Japanization  of  the  Far  East  is  an  alluring  pro- 
ject, certainly. 

“But  are  not  these  ‘open-door’  countries,  stipu- 
lated and  guaranteed  by  the  powers— meaning 
that  your  people  can  enjoy  no  special  trade  advan- 
tage in  them?”  the  American  asks  the  man  of 
Japan. 

“Emphatically  are  they  open  to  the  trade  and 
enterprise  of  all  comers:  but  there  are  four  poten- 
tial advantages  that  accrue  to  the  benefit  of  the 
Japanese  at  this  time— geographical  position,  ne- 
cessity for  recouping  the  cost  of  the  war,  an  iden- 
tical written  language,  and  superabundance  of 
capable  and  inexpensive  labor.  With  these  advan- 
tages and  practical  kinship  we  fear  no  rivalry  in 
the  creation  of  business  among  the  Mongol  races,” 
adds  the  man  speaking  for  the  New  Japan. 

332 


Japan’s  Commercial  Future 

It  calls  for  little  prescience  to  picture  a mighty 
Japanese  tonnage  on  the  seas  in  the  near  future. 
Next  to  industrial  development,  the  controlling  ar- 
ticle of  faith  of  the  awakened  Japan  is  the  creation 
of  an  ocean  commerce  great  enough  to  make  the 
Japanese  the  carriers  of  the  Orient.  There  can  be 
nothing  visionary  in  this,  for  bountiful  Asia  is  al- 
most without  facilities  for  conveying  her  products 
to  the  world’s  markets.  Indeed,  were  present-day 
Japan  eliminated  from  consideration,  it  would  be 
precise  to  say  that  Asia  possessed  no  oversea 
transportation  facilities. 

The  merchant  steamship  is  intended  to  play  an 
important  role  in  Japan’s  elevation.  Shipping  is 
to  be  fostered  by  the  nation  until  it  becomes  a 
great  industry,  and  it  is  the  aim  of  the  Mikado’s 
government  to  provide  for  constructing  ships  for 
the  public  defence  up  to  20,000  tons  burden,  and 
making  the  country  independent  of  foreign  yards 
through  being  able  to  produce  advantageously 
commercial  vessels  for  any  requirement.  Japan  is 
blind  neither  to  the  costliness  of  American-built 
ships  nor  to  the  remoteness  of  European  yards. 
The  war  with  Russia  was  not  half  over  when  it  was 
apparent  that  Japan  would  not  longer  be  depend- 
ent upon  the  outer  world  for  vessels  of  war  or  of 
commerce.  In  the  closing  weeks  of  1906  there  was 
completed  and  launched  in  Japan  the  biggest  bat- 
tleship in  the  world,  the  Sntsuma,  constructed 
exclusively  by  native  labor.  She  is  of  about  the 
dimensions  of  the  Dreadnought,  of  the  British 
navy,  but  claimed  to  be  her  superior  as  a fight- 
ing force.  The  launching  of  the  Satsuma,  wit- 

333 


East  of  Suez 

nessed  by  the  Emperor,  was  regarded  as  a great 
national  event. 

In  the  war  with  China,  twelve  or  thirteen  years 
ago,  Japan  had  insufficient  vessels  to  transport 
her  troops.  The  astute  statesmen  at  Tokyo,  rec- 
ognizing the  error  of  basing  the  transportation  re- 
quirements of  an  insular  nation  upon  ships  con- 
trolled by  foreigners,  speedily  drafted  laws  look- 
ing to  the  creation  of  a native  marine  which  might 
be  claimed  in  war  time  for  governmental  pur- 
poses. The  bestowal  of  liberal  bounties  trans- 
formed Japan  in  a few  short  years  from  owning 
craft  of  the  junk  class  to  a proprietorship  of  mod- 
ern iron-built  vessels  of  both  home  construction 
and  foreign  purchase.  In  the  late  campaign  there 
was  no  comparison  in  the  seamanship  of  the  agile 
son  of  Nippon  and  that  of  the  hulking  peasant  of 
interior  Russia.  The  Jap  was  proven  time  and 
again  to  be  the  equal  of  any  mariner.  Native 
adaptability  and  willingness  to  conform  to  strict 
discipline,  unite  in  making  the  Japanese  a sea- 
man whose  qualities  will  be  telling  in  times  of 
peace. 

Of  late  years  hundreds  of  clever  young  Japan- 
ese have  served  apprenticeships  in  important  ship- 
yards in  America,  England,  Germany  and  France, 
with  the  result  that  there  are  to-day  scores  of 
naval  architects  and  constructors  in  Japan  the 
equals  of  any  in  the  world.  Whether  as  designers, 
yard  managers  or  directors  of  construction,  the 
Japs,  with  their  special  schooling,  have  nothing 
to  learn  now  from  foreign  countries.  The  genius 

334 


Japan’s  Commercial  Future 

of  some  of  these  men  played  a part  in  Togo’s  great 
victory. 

Japanese  men  of  affairs  pretend  to  see  little  dif- 
ficulty in  the  way  of  their  nation  controlling  the 
building  of  ships  for  use  throughout  the  East.  Lo- 
cal yards  are  already  constructing  river  gunboats 
and  torpedo  craft  for  the  Chinese  government,  and 
it  is  reasonable  to  believe  that  a year  or  two  hence 
their  hold  upon  the  business  will  amount  practi- 
cally to  a monopoly.  British  firms  with  yards  at 
Singapore,  Hong  Kong  and  Shanghai  are  not  re- 
joiced at  the  prospect  of  Japanese  rivalry.  It  is 
possible  that  the  Japanese  may  become  ship- 
builders for  our  own  Philippine  archipelago. 

Already  the  shipyards  of  Nippon  are  ringing 
with  the  sound  of  Japan’s  upbuilding;  and  the 
plant  of  the  Mitsubishi  company,  at  Nagasaki— 
among  the  largest  in  the  world,— has  been  en- 
larged to  accommodate  increasing  demands.  The 
enormous  Minnesota,  of  the  Great  Northern 
Steamship  Company,  was  not  so  long  ago  repaired 
at  Nagasaki  in  a dry-dock  having  eighty  feet  in 
length  to  spare. 

Japanese  steamship  lines  already  extend  to 
Europe,  Australia,  Bombay,  Eastern  Si- 
beria, China,  Korea  and  Saghalien,  and 
to  San  Francisco  and  Puget  Sound  ports. 
A company  has  been  formed  to  develop  a 
service  between  Panama,  the  Philippines  and 
Japanese  ports,  in  anticipation  of  the  comple- 
tion of  the  Panama  Canal : and,  further  perceiv- 
ing the  opportunity  rapping  at  her  door,  Japan  is 

335 


16 


East  of  Suez 


preparing  to  place  a line  on  the  ocean  that  will 
bring  the  wool,  hides  and  grain  of  the  River  Plate 
region  to  Japanese  markets  at  the  minimum  of  ex- 
pense. The  undisguised  purpose  of  this  South- 
American  venture  is  to  get  cheap  wheat  from  Ar- 
gentina. Rice  eating  in  Japan  is  giving  way  to 
bread  made  from  wheat,  or  from  a mixture  of 
wheat  and  rice  and  other  cereals.  It  is  further 
known  that  Japan  is  casting  covetous  eyes  on  the 
trade  of  Brazil,  and  the  line  to  the  Plate  may  be 
extended  to  Brazilian  ports. 

In  1894  Japan  had  only  657,269  tons  of  mer- 
chant shipping ; she  has  now  upwards  of  a million 
tons,  represented  by  5,200  registered  vessels.  Al- 
most half  the  steamers  entering  Japanese  ports  fly 
the  flag  of  the  Rising  Sun,  and  Japan’s  tonnage  at 
thi§  time  is  greater  than  that  of  Russia,  Austria, 
Sweden,  Spain,  Denmark  or  Holland.  In  the  mat- 
ter of  oversea  tonnage,  Japan  is  far  ahead  of  the 
United  States.  One  fleet  of  Japanese  mail  steam- 
ers, the  Nippon  Yusen  Kaisha,  whose  president, 
Rempei  Kondo,  is  one  of  Japan’s  most  progres- 
sive men,  is  numerically  and  in  tonnage  larger 
than  any  ocean  line  under  the  Stars  and  Stripes. 
It  has  seventy  ships,  aggregating  236,000  tons.  A 
dozen  of  its  vessels,  making  the  service  between 
Yokohama  and  London,  are  fourteen-knot  ships. 

These  facts  should  be  considered  by  every 
American  complacently  believing  that  the  traffic 
of  the  countries  and  islands  washed  by  the  Pacific 
is  open  to  American  enterprise  whenever  we  bid 
for  it.  When  Eastern  trade  develops  in  magni- 

336 


JAPANESE  JUNK,  OR  CARGO  BOAT 


japan’s  Commercial  Future 

tude,  it  may  be  found  that  the  Japanese  have  laid 
permanent  hold  upon  its  carriage  and  interchange. 
John  Bull,  be  it  remembered,  drove  the  American 
merchantman  from  the  Atlantic;  and  likewise  Ja- 
pan may  capture  the  carrying  business  of  the  Pa- 
cific. It  must  be  obvious  that  the  nation  control- 
ling the  transportation  of  the  Far  East  will  seek  to 
control  its  trade : and  it  is  sounding  no  false  alarm 
to  cite  facts  and  conditions  showing  that  the  awak- 
ening lands  of  Eastern  Asia  have  more  in  store  for 
energetic  Japan  than  for  the  United  States,  now 
fattening  inordinately  on  home  trade— when  over- 
production comes,  as  it  surely  will,  it  then  may  be 
found  difficult  to  supplant  another  people  in  the  oc- 
cupation of  conveying  American  commodities  to 
Eastern  markets.  There  are  persons  in  the  Ori- 
ent, none  too  friendly  to  America,  who  expect  to 
see  the  commercial  flag  of  Japan  paramount  on 
the  Pacific  eight  or  ten  years  hence. 

If  it  be  conceded  that  Japan  will  absorb  the  bulk 
of  the  shipping  of  the  Pacific  as  it  develops,  valid 
reasons  for  fearing  Japan  as  the  trade  competitor 
of  the  United  States  do  not  exist.  Unquestionably 
Japan  is  to  exploit  the  industry  of  her  people ; but 
the  same  poverty  of  resources  making  this  impera- 
tive insures  for  Uncle  Sam  a valuable  partnership 
in  the  program.  Japan  is  bristling  with  work- 
shops and  mills  in  which  a hundred  forms  of  hand- 
iwork will  be  developed— and  in  a majority  of 
these  the  adaptive  labor  of  the  empire  will  fabri- 
cate, from  materials  drawn  from  America,  scores 
of  forms  of  merchandise,  which  the  Japanese 

339 


East  of  Suez 


propaganda  will  distribute  throughout  China, 
Manchuria,  Korea  and  Japan— the  “Great  Ja- 
pan,” British  publicists  are  calling  it.  Methods, 
materials,  machinery,  tools— all  will  be  American. 

Having  made  no  systematic  appeal  for  the  trade 
of  the  Far  East  in  its  broadest  sense,  America  en- 
joys but  small  share  of  it.  In  the  past  few  years 
our  exports  to  Japan,  however,  have  grown  rap- 
idly—chiefly  in  raw  cotton  and  other  unmanufac- 
tured materials.  With  Japanese  selling  agents 
canvassing  lands  inhabited  by  a half  billion  peo- 
ple, the  products  of  America  are  to  have  enhanced 
consumption.  This  trade  in  Mongol  countries,  al- 
though vicarious,  may  run  to  large  dimensions. 

The  leading  item  of  Japan’s  industrial  promo- 
tion program  is  to  become  manufacturer  of  a 
goodly  portion  of  the  textiles  worn  in  her  vast 
“sphere  of  commerce.”  The  Japanese  have  seen 
that  the  British  Isles,  growing  not  a pound  of  cot- 
ton, spin  and  weave  the  staple  for  half  the  people 
of  the  earth,  and  wish  to  profit  by  the  example  of 
their  prosperous  ally.  To  this  end,  cotton  mills 
have  sprung  into  being  throughout  Japan,  in 
which  American-grown  fiber  is  transformed  by  the 
cheapest  competent  labor  in  the  world  into  fabrics 
sold  to  China’s  and  Japan’s  millions.  It  is  certain 
that  the  controlling  manufacture  of  Japan  will  be 
cotton,  and  the  production  of  woolen  cloths  may 
come  next.  It  is  interesting  to  know  that  Japan  in- 
creased the  value  of  her  exports  of  cotton  manu- 
factures to  China  from  $251,363  in  1894  to  $16,- 
126,054  in  1904. 


340 


Japan’s  Commercial  Future 

“Why  not  fabricate  her  own  raw  silk,  and  send 
it  to  market  ready  for  wear?”  asks  the  foreigner 
reluctant  to  believe  that  Japan  can  hope  to  com- 
pete with  Lancashire  in  the  spinning  of  cotton. 
The  answer  is  simple— it  is  because  America  is  the 
principal  purchaser  of  the  raw  article.  Were  it 
brought  across  the  Pacific  in  manufactured  form, 
the  duty  on  it  would  be  almost  prohibitive;  in  its 
unwrought  state  it  enters  the  country  free. 

Great  progress  must  be  made  before  Japanese 
business  may  be  considered  a “menace”  to  any 
nation  enjoying  Eastern  trade,  for  the  yearly 
value  of  Japan’s  manufactures  is  now  only  about 
$150,000,000,  an  average  of  about  $3  per  capita 
of  the  population.  America  has  single  cities  that 
produce  more.  The  combined  capital  of  all  organ- 
ized industrial,  mining,  shipping,  banking  and 
agricultural  undertakings  in  Japan  is  $475,000,- 
000,  or  less  than  half  the  capital  of  the  United 
States  Steel  Corporation.  The  Mikado’s  empire  is 
bound  to  Great  Britain  by  a political  alliance  of 
unusual  force,  but  industrial  Japan  must  of  neces- 
sity be  linked  to  the  United  States  by  commercial 
ties  even  stronger.  Distance  between  Europe  and 
Japan,  and  excessive  Suez  Canal  tolls,  give  unas- 
sailable advantage  to  the  United  States  as  pur- 
veyor of  unwrouglit  materials  to  the  budding  New 
England  of  the  Far  East. 

The  custom  of  speaking  of  our  friends  of  the  Is- 
land Empire  as  “the  little  Japanese,”  is  a fault 
that  should  be  promptly  mended.  Japan  is  small, 
it  is  true,  but  the  people  are  numerous  to  the  point 

34i 


East  of  Suez 


of  wonderment.  Consequently,  it  can  do  no  harm 
to  memorize  these  facts:  That  Japan  has  an  area 
actually  27,000  square  miles  greater  than  the  Brit- 
ish Isles,  and  5,000,000  more  inhabitants ; in  other 
words,  the  population  of  Japan  is  47,000,000, 
while  that  of  Great  Britain  and  Ireland  is  but  42,- 
000,000.  That  Japan’s  population  exceeds  that  of 
France  by  8,000,000,  of  Italy  by  14,000,000,  and  of 
Austro-Hungary  by  nearly  2,000,000.  That  out- 
side of  Asia  there  are  but  three  countries  in  all  the 
world  with  greater  populations  than  Japan— Rus- 
sia, the  United  States,  and  Germany.  There  was 
reason  for  calling  the  Jap  the  “Yankee  of  the 
East,”  or  the  “Englishman  of  the  Orient,”  for 
otherwise  the  phrases  could  not  have  been  forced 
into  popular  use. 

It  is  the  judgment  of  many  who  have  studied  the 
Japanese  at  close  range  that  they  are  endowed 
with  attributes  of  mind  and  body  which  make  them 
equal,  man  for  man,  with  the  people  of  America  and 
Great  Britain.  Asiatic  though  they  are,  it  will  be 
unwise  to  permit  the  brain  to  become  clogged 
with  the  idea  that  they  are  “Asiatics”  in  the 
popular  acceptance  of  the  word.  The  Japan  of 
the  present  is  the  antithesis  of  “Asiatic,”  and  the 
Japan  of  the  near  future  promises  to  be  a country 
best  measured  by  Western  standards. 

The  Japanese  are  athirst  for  knowledge,  and  im- 
patient for  the  time  to  arrive  when  the  world  will 
estimate  them  at  their  intellectual  value,  and  for- 
get to  speak  of  them  as  the  little  “yellow”  men  of 
the  East.  This  is  manifested  to  a visitor  many 

342 


Japan’s  Commercial  Future 

times  every  day.  Their  greatest  craving  is  to 
know  English,  not  merely  well  enough  to  carry  on 
trade  advantageously,  but  to  read  understand- 
ingly  books  that  deal  with  the  moderate  sciences, 
and  other  works  generally  benefiting.  Yokohama 
and  Tokyo  possess  a score  of  establishments  where 
practically  every  important  volume  of  instruction, 
whether  it  be  English  or  American,  is  reproduced 
in  inexpensive  form,  and  widely  sold.  For  many 
years  English  has  been  taught  in  Japan’s  schools, 
but  thousands  of  boys  and  men  in  cities  and  towns 
are  each  year  acquiring  the  language  by  study  in 
odd  hours. 

Examine  the  dog-eared  pamphlet  in  the  hands 
of  the  lad  assisting  in  the  shop  where  you  are  pur- 
chasing something,  and  you  are  almost  certain  to 
find  it  an  elementary  English  book.  Merchants 
know  English  well,  as  a rule;  but  with  many  of 
them  the  desire  for  knowledge  is  not  satisfied  with 
the  acquisition  of  English— they  desire  to  know 
other  languages.  In  Yokohama  I know  a mer- 
chant of  importance  whose  English  is  so  good 
that  one  is  drawn  to  inquire  where  he  learned  it. 
The  answer  will  be  that  he  studied  odd  hours  at 
home  and  when  not  serving  customers.  And  the 
visitor  may  further  be  informed  by  this  man  that 
he  is  also  studying  German  and  French.  A teacher 
of  German  goes  to  his  house  at  six  o’clock  each 
morning  and  for  two  hours  drills  him  in  the  lan- 
guage. Then,  in  the  evening,  after  a long  day 
spent  at  business,  a French  teacher  instructs  him 
in  the  graceful  language  of  France.  And  this 

343 


East  of  Suez 


merchant  is  but  a type  of  thousands  of  Japanese 
who  are  daily  garnering  knowledge. 

It  is  a pleasing  incident  for  the  visitor  from 
America  to  read  of  a meeting  in  the  Japanese  cap- 
ital of  the  local  Yale  Alumni  Association— quite  as 
pleasing  as  to  see  base-ball  played  in  every  vacant 
field  convenient  to  a large  town.  Returning  school- 
boys have  carried  the  game  home  to  their  compan- 
ions, and  in  the  voyage  across  the  Pacific  it  has 
lost  none  of  its  fine  points.  For  thirty  years  and 
longer  the  Japs  have  been  learning  English  with 
the  industry  of  beavers.  And  ambition  has  been 
responsible  for  this,  the  dogged  determination  to 
be  somebody,  and  the  patriotic  wish  to  see  Japan 
stand  with  the  progressive  nations  of  the  earth. 
The  power  to  keep  such  a people  down  does  not  ex- 
ist. Preparation  is  a subject  never  absent  from 
the  thoughts  of  the  Japanese.  It  was  preparation 
that  gave  them  victory  after  victory  over  the  crea- 
tures of  the  Czar.  Now  they  are  fairly  launched 
upon  a brilliant  career  in  trade  and  commerce. 
But  Japan  can  merely  fabricate  our  raw  materials, 
thereby  occupying  a field  in  Asia  that  up  to  now 
Uncle  Sam  has  made  no  determined  effort  to 
secure. 


344 


INDEX 


INDEX 


Agra,  Indian  city  of  unrivaled  in- 
terest, 168;  its  Taj  Mahal,  168— 
184 

Ambir,  old  capital  of  Jeypore  state, 
,166 

America,  interest  in  Suez  canal  as 
forerunner  of  Panama,  14;  flag 
not  represented  by  commercial 
vessel  at  Suez  in  generation,  18; 
President  Roosevelt’s  insistence 
for  Panama  canal,  19;  value  of 
Oriental  trade,  21,  22;  cotton  of 
wrought  in  England,  22 ; trifling 
exports  of  manufactured  articles, 
22 ; diminutive  trade  with  South 
America,  22 ; desirability  of  trade 
extension  in  East,  23 ; govern- 
ment’s tariff  at  Panama,  24;  how 
to  make  Panama  canal  pay  in- 
directly, 27;  demand  for  creation 
of  merchant  marine,  27 ; to  have 
100,000,000  inhabitants  when  canal 
is  completed,  28 ; commercial  su- 
premacy without  merchant  ma- 
rine, 29;  government’s  insistence 
on  “open  door”  in  China,  303; 
seeming  indifference  to  Chinese 
trade,  310;  waning  cotton  ex- 
ports to  China,  313,  314 
Arabi,  rebellion  of,  resulting  in  con- 
trol of  Egypt  by  Great  Britain, 
9;  Kandy,  place  of  his  exile,  110 
Arjamand,  consort  of  Shah  Jahan, 
for  whom  Taj  Mahal  was  erected, 
171 

Benares,  headquarters  of  Hindu 
religion,  185-202;  burning  ghat 
and  cremations,  189-194;  Mon- 
key Temple,  196-200 
Bombay,  headquarters  of  Parsees, 
126;  a city  gone  sport-mad,  133, 
134;  race  meeting  at,  137,  138; 
important  cotton  port,  139; 
superb  railway  station,  139 
Buddhism,  Kandy  the  Mecca  of  the 
faith,  95;  tenets  of  faith,  96,  97; 
reputed  tooth  of  Buddha,  97,  98, 
101;  pilgrims  to  Kandy,  101, 
102 ; cremation,  102 

Calcutta,  205-219;  Hooghly  pilots, 
206 ; Job  Charnock,  founder  of, 
209,  210;  under  Lord  Curzon’s 
viceroyship,  217,  218 
Canals,  no  more  inter-ocean  canals 
possible,  4 

Canton,  unique  and  important  com- 


mercial city,  244-266 ; strenuous 
and  monopolistic  guide,  249; 
street  scenes  and  experiences, 
250,  251;  executions,  255; 

funeral  procession,  256,  257 ; 

educational  center,  257 ; educa- 
tional examinations,  258,  259; 

“literary  poles,”  260,  263;  boat- 
life  on  river  front,  263,  264; 
leper  village  and  boat  toll,  266 

Caste,  Rodiya  people  of  Ceylon, 
103,  104,  107 ; British  rule 

recognizes  no  distinctions  of,  107  ; 
as  seen  in  Bombay,  140;  hered- 
itary throughout  India,  143 ; 
man  servant  who  could  not  carry 
his  own  packages,  144,  145,  146 

Ceylon,  where  “only  man  is  vile,” 
30;  Cingalese,  34,  44;  area, 

population,  and  races,  44;  Eng- 
land’s conquest  of,  47 ; railways, 
47;  exports,  48;  elephant  kraal, 
48,  49;  an  island  paradise,  50; 
the  cadjan,  62,  63;  tea  as  "king 
crop,”  117;  when  coffee  was  chief 
crop,  121;  details  of  tea  cultiva- 
tion, 122,  125 

China,  Singapore  and  Hong  Kong 
as  places  of  residence  for  Chi- 
nese, 227,  237;  cession  of  Hong 
Kong  to  British,  235;  Canton, 
unique  city,  244-266;  Macao, 
Monte  Carlo  of  East,  267—289 ; 
love  of  fan-tan  by  Chinese,  284 ; 
Germany’s  play  for  trade  prestige, 
290-310;  land  of  meager  com- 
modities, 295;  what  her  “awak- 
ened” trade  would  mean,  297; 
Germany's  colony  of  Kiau-chau, 
304-309;  America  and  Chinese 
trade,  312-314;  plans  for  rousing 
country,  316 

Colombia,  lo6s  of  Isthmian  terri- 
tory, through  Panama  canal 
scheme,  4 

Colombo,  approach  to  harbor,  33 ; 
landing  jetty,  33 ; port  of  call 
between  Occident,  Orient  and 
Australasia,  34 ; medley  of  races, 
35 ; westernmost  limit  of  ’rick- 
shaws, 36;  hotels,  39,  40;  popu- 
lation, 44 ; Clapham  Junction  of 
East,  61;  route  to  Kandy,  92 

Cotton,  Bombay  as  port,  139 ; Great 
Britain  and  America  as  manu- 
facturers, 313-314;  expansion  of 
fabrication  in  Japan,  340 

Curzon,  former  viceroy  of  India, 


347 


Index 


217,  218;  splendor  of  rule  at 

Calcutta,  217 

De  Lesseps's  craving  for  greatness, 

5;  obtains  concession  for  con- 
structing Suez  canal,  6 ; raising 
money  for  canal  scheme,  6 ; 
death  of,  in  madhouse.  10 ; 
monument  at  Port  Said,  11 

Egypt,  loss  of  self-rule  through 
Suez  canal  construction,  4 ; date 
of  Suez  canal  concession,  6 : no 
debt  when  concession  given,  6 ; to 
subscribe  nothing  for  construc- 
tion of  Suez  canal,  6 ; Arabi  re- 
bellion, resulting  in  British  con- 
trol of  Egypt,  9 : deriving  no  ad- 
vantage through  canal,  10 

France,  how  bankers  of,  lost  con- 
trolling Suez  shares,  15,  16 ; sus- 
ceptibilities of,  how  preserved  in 
Suez  management,  16 ; ally  of 
Russia,  2,  96 

Germany,  second  in  list  of  Suez 
patrons,  18;  Kaiser's  fight  for 
new  markets,  18:  friendship  for 
Russia  in  war,  290—297 ; Kaiser's 
play  for  Chinese  trade,  290-310; 
Emperor  as  Trade  Lord,  292, 
295;  Kaiser's  disapproval  of 
Monroe  Doctrine,  298;  plans  for 
capturing  Oriental  business,  301; 
subsidized  steamship  service  with 
East,  302:  "leased”  colony  of 

Kiau-chau,  304 

Great  Britain,  benefits  accruing 
from  Suez  canal,  15;  how  control 
was  secured,  15;  preponderance 
of  flag  over  Suez  traffic,  18;  con- 
trol of  interior  of  Ceylon,  95 ; 
rule  in,  Asia  recognizing  no  caste 
distinctions,  107 ; restoration  of 
Taj  Mahal  by  government  of, 
183;  Job  Charnock,  founder  of 
Calcutta,  and  pioneer  empire- 
builder,  209,  210;  great  work  in 
India,  220;  Penang,  227;  Sin- 
gapore, universal  sea  port  brought 
to  Empire  by  Sir  Stamford 
Raffles,  227 ; Hong  Kong,  im- 
portant port  and  naval  base.  231— 

238 ; no  permanent  control  of 
Eastern  business,  301;  tenure  of 
Wei-hai-wei,  308 

Hinduism,  orthodoxy  of  Maharajah 
of  Jeypore.  156.  159;  animal 

sacrifices  to  goddess  Kali,  167, 
199-202;  Benares,  head  of  re- 
ligion, 185-202:  scenes  on  banks 
of  sacred  Ganges.  193-196; 
cremation  of  dead,  190-194;  in- 
comprehensibleness of  merits  of, 

201,  202;  habits  of  speech  of  il- 
literate, 223 ; curse  of  widowhood 
in  India,  224 

348 


Hong  Kong,  island  link  in  Britain's 
chain,  231;  rains,  231,  232;  city 
wrested  from  mountain  side,  232; 
cession  from  China,  235 ; guard- 
ing northern  entrance  to  China 
Sea,  235,  236;  population  and 
traffic,  236;  Happy  Valley  race 
course,  238,  239;  benefits  and 
pitfalls  of  the  chit,  241,  242; 
convenience  of  bills  of  fare,  243 

India,  Bombay  and  its  Parsees, 
126-133 ; scenes  at  Bombay  race 
meeting,  137,  138;  caste,  140, 

143 ; people  not  readily  convinced 
of  advantage  of  modern  imple- 
ments, 143,  144;  Jeypore,  149— 
167 ; Ambir,  old  capital  of  Jey- 
pore, 166 ; Agra  and  Taj  Mahal, 
168—184;  Benares,  fountain- 
head of  Hindu  religion.  185—202; 
Calcutta,  capital  of  British  In- 
dia, 205—219;  viceroyship  of 
Lord  Curzon,  217,  218;  Viscount 
Kitchener,  head  of  army,  218, 
219;  facts  and  figures  of,  220— 
223,  225;  the  “L.  G.”  of  Bengal, 
219 

Ismail,  Khedive,  lured  into  assisting 
Suez  scheme,  6 ; prodigality  of, 
10;  personal  holding  of  Suez 
securities,  10 

Jahan,  Shah,  builder  of  Taj  Mahal, 
168,  171;  interment  beside  wife’s 
grave,  179 

Japan,  commercial  future,  315—344; 
best  exponent  of  Asiatic  progress, 
315;  “scourge  of  God”  and  “yel- 
low peril”  of  German  origin, 
316:  advantages  secured  by  de- 
feating Russia,  317;  process  of 
industrial  development,  317;  na- 
tional debt,  318,  321,  324;  homo- 
geneity of  people,  323 ; resources, 
325-330;  desire  to  emulate  Eng- 
land, 331;  why  country  can  ex- 
ploit near-by  lands  advantage- 
ously, 332 : mighty  tonnage  on 
Pacific,  333,  334;  shipbuilding, 
334,  335;  no  real  “menace”  to 
American  trade,  341;  athirst  for 
knowledge,  342-344 

Jeypore,  capital  of  Maharajah  of, 
149-165:  fondness  of  women  for 
jewelry,  151:  benevolent  ruler  of, 
156,  159 : astronomical  apparatus 
of  Jai  Singh,  164 

Kandy,  ancient  capital  of  Ceylon, 
43 ; journey  from  Colombo,  92 ; 
city  of  Buddha's  tooth,  95 ; Bud- 
dhist pilgrims  to,  95,  96 ; natural 
beauty  of,  108;  atrocities  of  a 
king  of,  109 ; British  rule  of, 
110:  Peradeniya  tropical  garden, 
110,  113,  114,  115;  executive 

seat  of  Cevlon's  tea  industry, 
117,  118,  127 


Index 


Kitchener,  Visccfiint,  commander-in- 
chief  of  Indian  army,  218,  219 

Macao,  journey  to  Portuguese  colony 
from  Canton,  267;  pioneer 
European  settlement  in  East, 
272;  Eastern  Monte  Carlo,  272, 
283-289;  political  refuge,  274; 
Camoens,  278—282 
Manar,  pearling-ground  of  Gulf  of, 
50;  advertisements  announcing  a 
fishery,  56,  57;  period  of,  66; 
scene  on  banks  during  a fishery, 
76,  77:  profit  of  fishery,  87 
Marichchikkaddi,  pearl  metropolis 
of,  58,  61,  62,  64,  65;  how 

reached  from  Colombo,  62 ; popu- 
lation, 63  ; fishing  fleet,  71,  72  ; 
scenes  in  camp  and  at  kottu,  77, 
78;  where  oysters  pass  current  as 
money,  79 ; selling  the  oysters  at 
auction,  79,  80,  81 ; health  of 
camp,  85 ; illustration  of  white 
man’s  rule,  86,  87 

Merchant  Marine,  necessity  for 
creation  of,  27;  American  com- 
mercial supremacy  without  help 
of,  29 

Panama  Canal,  antiquity  of  project, 
4 ; President  Roosevelt’s  insist- 
ence for,  19 ; use  of,  by  South 
American  shipping,  21;  drawing 
traffic  from  east  of  Singapore,  21; 
vast  Eastern  area  to  be  served 
by,  21:  destined  to  make  America 
trade-arbiter  of  world,  23;  pre- 
diction of  cost  of  construction 
and  maintenance,  23;  question  of 
annual  tonnage,  24 
Parsees,  their  home  in  Bombay, 
126;  followers  of  Zoroaster,  127: 
Towers  of  Silence  and  method  of 
disposing  of  dead,  131,  132,  133 
Pearls,  Swedish,  Chinese  and  Jap- 
anese methods  of  inducing  pearl 
formation,  55;  Indian  and  Cin- 
galese expert  dealers,  66:  Indian 
grandees  chief  buyers  of,  88 
Pearl-fishing,  scene  of,  in  Gulf  of 
Manar,  50;  description  of,  51, 
56,  57;  Professor  Hornell's 

theories,  52 ; divers,  66,  69 ; the 
shark-charmer,  70,  71,  72;  time 


of  divers  under  water,  75,  76; 
scene  on  Manar  banks,  76,  77 ; 
devices  for  stealing  pearls,  79 ; 
process  by  which  pearls  are  ex- 
tracted from  oysters,  81,  82 

Penang,  leading  tin  port  of  world, 
227 

Raffles,  Sir  Stamford,  pioneer  of 
Singapore,  227 

Russia,  friendship  of  Germany  dur- 
ing war,  290—304;  benefit  to 
have  accompanied  victory  over 
Japan,  296 

Said,  viceroy,  date  of  giving  Suez 
concession,  6 

Singapore,  a turnstile  of  commerce, 
227;  universal  character  of,  228 

South  America,  use  of  Panama  by 
carrying  trade  of,  21;  trifling 
imports  from  United  States,  22; 
importance  of  exports  to  United 
States,  23 

Suez  Canal,  antiquity  of  project,  3, 
4 ; Persian  oracle’s  warning 
against,  5;  personages  who  had 
considered,  5 ; to  pay  Egyptian 
treasury  part  of  proceeds,  6,  15; 
Ismail's  interest  in  scheme,  10 ; 
perpetuation  of  names  of  Egyp- 
tian rulers,  11;  simplicity  of  con- 
struction and  cost  of,  12 ; inter- 
national character  of,  12;  Dis- 
raeli’s purchase  of  control  for 
Great  Britain,  13;  physical 
statistics  of,  14;  tariff  of,  14,  17; 
value  to  world’s  commerce,  17 ; 
statistics  of  tonnage  and  income, 
17;  average  daily  use  of,  18; 
European  shippers’  choice  of 
canals,  20;  shareholders  in  no  fear 
of  Panama  competition,  29 

Taj  Mahal,  tomb  of  Arjamand,  wife 
of  Shah  Jahan,  and  world’s  most 
exquisite  building,  168-184;  cost 
of,  173;  burial-place  of  Shah 
Jahan,  179;  restorations  by 
British  government,  183 

Tea,  cultivation  in  Ceylon,  122,  125 

Widowhood,  curse  of  Indian,  224 


349 


